Take Two
by writeinspiredraw
Summary: Sequel to After The Storm Blows Through! Season 2 AU, read on to see the newest story involving Booth, Brennan and Amethyst! Rated T to be safe. I hate summaries. 2nd in Ammi series.
1. Chapter 1

**(A/N): Hi guys! Here is the awaited sequel to After The Storm Blows Through! To be honest with you, it took so long because I wanted perfection and I kept second guessing myself. But, I have finally decided to just take a chance and post it, and hopefully you butterflies will like it. Yeah, so… Let me know what you think and I will try to get the next chapter up asap.**

 **Just a quick thing; I hate watching Cam at the beginning of season 2, because I hate watching her try to make Brennan quit, so the first few chapters are not going to have any episodes in them, whilst I sort it out and make Cam the nice one we all know now. However, this will be a season 2 piece and please, read on hehe.**

 **I don't own Bones, and this is a blanket disclaimer for the entire fic. Enjoy!**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 1**

"Hello?" Seeley Booth called out as he let himself into his apartment, dropping his keys on the small table set inside his hallway and shrugging out of his suit jacket, holding it in one hand as he entered the living area. "Oh, hey Ammi. Aren't you supposed to be at your mom's tonight?" He found an involuntary smile covering his features as he entered the room to find his girlfriend's (and partner's) fourteen year old daughter resting upside down on his couch watching the television the wrong way up, her calves resting over the top of his comfy couch and her long dark waves brushing the hardwood floor, one lone electric blue streak standing out amongst the dark tresses of her hair. Booth dropped his suit jacket over the back of the armchair situated almost adjacent to the couch, silently wondering what in the world had prompted the teenager to watch television upside down.

"Huh? Oh, hey, Booth. Yeah, I was supposed to be at mom's, but she's too busy eating her own body weight in ice cream and viciously stabbing that Dr Saroyan voodoo doll Sam gave her from New Orleans." Amethyst Brennan returned evenly as she manoeuvred herself back upright and turned slightly to face the FBI agent, bright red in the face from the blood that had been rushing to her head as she had sat in the strange position.

Booth frowned at the teenager's response to his questioning. Dr Goodman had left the Jeffersonian Institute a month earlier, placing one Dr Camille Saroyan as head of forensics whilst Temperance Brennan was away on a dig somewhere, Booth couldn't remember exactly where. Everyone knew the man had done it on purpose so that he didn't have to deal with the fallout that would inevitably occur with the anthropologist, but things hadn't been anywhere near easy since Brennan had returned to DC, with battles occurring every few moments between the two strong, stubborn women. Of course, Booth would always side with Brennan, but that didn't mean he was comfortable with being an observer to them going after each other all the time.

Amethyst knew that Cam was simply jealous of how close the partners were, despite not being aware that the pair were actually together. She'd asked Angela about her a few weeks ago when she'd nipped by the lab to ask Zack a few questions on her research project for a Forensic Anthropology module, instead visiting with the artist when she'd found that the intern was busy defleshing a set of remains for her mother.

" _Why's she trying to dig her claws into Booth?" Amethyst asked in frustration, throwing her notebook onto the artist's coffee table, only to watch in vague interest as it slid straight over the top of the coffee table and fell off of the other side, slumping down onto the couch with a sigh. Cam had slipped out of the lab for lunch about five minutes before Amethyst had arrived, and so hadn't seen the teenager enter._

 _Angela snorted in amusement at her, setting down her remote and moving to sit down beside the girl. "That's one way of putting it. And she wants him. Thinks she can make him want her."_

" _But he's with mom."_

" _She doesn't know that."_

" _Why did no one tell her?"_

" _Because she didn't ask." Angela replied with a mischievous smirk. "Just like she doesn't know about you either. Or Parker. She's never asked the right questions to the right people."_

" _You're up to something."_

" _I have no idea what you're talking about."_

" _If you say so. But whenever the fallout happens, let me know. I want to have a front seat and popcorn."_

" _I'll be sure to tell you. You know, if I was actually planning anything. Which I'm not."_

" _Obviously."_

"Bones doesn't believe in voodoo." Booth pointed out.

"Luckily for Camille." Amethyst shot back with a smirk. "Truthfully, she's eating a lot of ice cream on the couch back home and I had to get started on a dissertation. Here was quieter. Do you mind?"

"Of course I don't mind, Gem." Booth sat down beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I gave you a key so you didn't have to ask. You're welcome here anytime. You know that."

"Yeah, sorry, it's been a long week. But you should go talk to mom. Dr Saroyan's kinda getting to her. She's thinking of quitting. Again."

"Alright, I'll head over there now. Have you eaten?"

"Yeah, I had some pizza earlier. Leftovers are still on the kitchen counter."

"Okay, well don't wait up."

"I won't. I'll have to go home tomorrow morning though, just a warning."

"I'll make sure we're decent for then." Booth returned with a laugh. "I'll see you tomorrow then kid."

"See you tomorrow old man."

…

Amethyst sighed as she set down her pen and rubbed at her tired eyes. She'd been working on her research element for three hours straight and it was beginning to weigh on her. She needed a break. She glanced around the darkened living room with a small half-smile playing at her lips. When Brennan had decided to go on a dig two weeks after her mother's case had been summarily declared closed, or at least with no more progress, she'd asked Amethyst who she wanted to stay with whilst she was gone.

" _Ammi, your dad or Ange."_

" _Huh? What?"_

" _Who do you want to stay with whilst I'm gone? Your dad or Angela?" Brennan elaborated as she set a bowl of pasta down in the centre of the table. Amethyst shrugged as she set down a bread basket next to it and sat down opposite Booth and Brennan, a scene that had become commonplace a few times a week._

" _Don't really care, though it'll probably be Ange. Dad's still in… Dad's still gone."_

 _Booth frowned at her, but Amethyst kept her gaze on her plate. Brennan had never questioned why she wouldn't mention where her father was, but Booth had started giving her looks that told her he was curious about it, and she wanted to hold off on telling anyone about that for as long as she could. She almost sighed in relief as Booth directed his attention back to Brennan. "Why does she have to go to one of those two?"_

" _Because I won't leave her on her own. You know that. We decided when Ammi was ten that she wouldn't be left alone overnight until she was sixteen."_

" _Who is 'we'?"_

" _Mom and I." Amethyst answered around a mouthful of pasta. "So, yeah, I'll go to Angela's. I don't mind."_

" _What about me?" Booth blurted out, surprising the Brennans and to some extent, himself. "Gem could stay with me."_

" _Booth, I… Are you sure?" Brennan asked, a hint of surprise wheedling its way into her tone. "It won't be like looking after Parker. She comes with a whole new set of rules."_

" _Like I need to be fed regularly, and taken on walks, and patted on the head." Amethyst rolled her eyes. "I'm not a pet."_

" _I know sweetie." Brennan assured her. "You're just different to most other people."_

" _True."_

" _Look, Bones, Gem, I think it's safe to say that I already know how you guys work, so if you want to give it a go, then I'll house the stray mutt." Booth winked at Amethyst, who snorted into her food at the dog analogy, trying not to laugh. "Bones, what are you thinking?"_

" _Uh, well, Amethyst, what would you prefer?"_

" _I'll stay with Booth if that's alright. Angela has a date next week anyway. Some biker guy."_

" _Alright well, that's settled. Will someone pass me the pasta?"_

Amethyst smiled again as she shoved her work onto the coffee table and grabbed the throw blanket from the back of the couch. It hadn't been exactly smooth sailing for the teenager and FBI agent at first, but eventually they'd developed enough of a rhythm to become comfortable with living with one another. She knew Brennan and Booth loved each other, and after seeing what Booth was like without her mother around, Amethyst could honestly say that the idea of them becoming more serious, or even staying together forever, didn't sound so bad.

…

Brennan snuggled into Booth's side as they sat on the couch together. She hadn't been expecting him that night, but suspected that Amethyst had sent him over, not that she was complaining. Watching a documentary on the Himalayas curled into her partner's side was better than watching it with a tub of ice cream she'd been stabbing quite viciously. She knew she shouldn't let Cam get to her, but the woman was starting to get under her skin little by little. It had been so easy when Goodman was in charge that the new chain of command was stifling her. She would have been fine with it had she been told upfront, but she hadn't. Amethyst hadn't known about Cam until Brennan had gotten back, and Booth had thought that one of the squints had told Brennan, and so hadn't mentioned it because he thought she hadn't mentioned it because she herself was annoyed with it. She wanted nothing more than to kiss Booth right in front of the other woman, but she wouldn't. She wouldn't stoop to that playing field, after all, she'd already won the game. Cam just didn't know it yet.

"What are you thinking about?" Booth murmured, pressing a light kiss into her hair. "I can hear the wheels turning."

"Wheels? There are no wheels in this room."

"Expression, Bones. Means you're thinking too hard."

"Oh. One day I will get one right." Brennan grumbled, though it was light-hearted. "Just thinking about work."

"It'll be alright." Booth assured her gently, seeing straight through her answer to what she was really worrying about. "There's no point worrying about tomorrow until it comes around. Now, there's something else you should focus that big, beautiful brain of yours on."

"Oh, really? And what's that?"

"Me." He pressed his lips firmly to hers, pulling her flush to him and deepening the kiss to hear her moan. She willingly parted her lips as her arms curled lazily around his neck, pulling him forwards to rest above her on the couch. Sometimes words just weren't needed between them.

 **To Be Continued…**


	2. Chapter 2

**(A/N): Long time, I know, but I needed some time. Yeah, so I'm not going to get started on the many reasons it took a while, but I'll move straight onto review time!**

 **Kareneb:** Aww thank you! And I'm sorry you had to wait so long!

 **Gatewatcher:** Yeah, I guess she is. Never really thought about it like that.

 **5546Laura:** Well, I hope I can deliver then!

 **Topaz270:** Thanks!

 **ZinaR:** Thank you and yeah, Angela will ensure that we have a wonderful reveal! Cam will get better, but until then, I will try not to hate her too much!

 **Allthingstvshows:** Okay… Thank you, love you too… And I will try to update this more often

 **YellowShadess:** Yay, thank you!

 **Guest:** Oh, well, I'm glad you're so optimistic about this!

 **Allthingstvshows (2):** Yup

 **Allthingstvshows (3):** I know and hopefully, this chapter will serve you well until the next update I will have for you!

 **Adelled:** That it does.

 **Okay, so I won't keep you any longer. Read on and let me know what you think.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 2**

"Am! Wait up!"

Amethyst whirled round in the tightly packed corridor along with her friend, Daisy, who had shoulder length dirty blonde hair tied back into a functional ponytail and sharp brown eyes, both girls carrying heavy books piled high in their arms as they left one of the five classes they shared that semester. They quickly spotted a dark haired man in a grey suit walking towards them with a quickened pace, looking more than a little worried. Amethyst frowned ever so slightly, allowing her books to slide from her grip and fall into her open backpack, which was hanging off of one of her shoulders. "Dad?" She questioned almost incredulously, staring up at him with wide eyes and a slack jaw.

Daisy placed a hand on her arm gently to gain her attention. Amethyst's head snapped to her and she managed to get her reaction under control. Daisy smiled sweetly. "Hey, Ammi, I'll see you at lunch, okay?"

"Yeah, thanks Daisy. Meet you at the usual deli place at one?"

"Sure thing. I have another lecture to get to. See ya." Daisy waved before turning and walking off with the masses of students, leaving the teenager with the suited man, who had paused in front of her.

"Hey dad." Amethyst greeted cautiously. "What're you doing here?"

"Love you too Am." James Dante replied sarcastically, which only gained him an eye roll from his daughter. "Did you dye your hair?" He asked abruptly, reaching out to take the blue streak in her hair between his fingers. Amethyst rolled her eyes again, pulling back swiftly so that her hair slipped from his grasp.

"It's just one streak. Mom doesn't care. How was, y'know, where you've been this time?"

"Fine, fine. Got in last night, though I did miss you when I was gone. Katie was happy I was back."

"Another reason I don't see you." Amethyst commented mildly, no bite behind her tone, just acceptance. James had had several relationships and had also been married a couple of times after breaking up with Brennan, but neither the relationships nor the marriages ever lasted very long, the longest one being eight months when Amethyst had been nine. His latest girlfriend didn't even know he had a daughter, so Amethyst didn't bother trying to see her dad, when he was in the country, at least. She couldn't be bothered trying to explain her own existence to the woman he was seeing. "Why are you here, dad? I have another class to get to before my lunch break."

"I need you to go see your mom for me." James confessed quietly, sighing as he slumped against the wall beside his daughter, fingers pulling at the knot in his plain black tie. Amethyst automatically found herself comparing it to Booth's multitude of patterned ones and silently decided that she preferred the ties of the FBI agent than those her dad owned. "I have a message for her, and it's going to upset her."

"What? That you're getting married again? I think she threw a party last time." She snarked in reply. James shot her a disapproving look, to which she shrugged, unapologetic.

"No. Listen, it's about a man called Vince McVicar."

"The guy that killed mom's mom?" Amethyst checked, wide eyed once again.

"Yeah. He's… Well, he's dead. Killed in prison this morning. Someone needs to tell your mom before the press gets ahold of it, and well, it's not Christmas yet, so your mom and I are bound to start arguing if I go to tell her and it'll turn into a massive deal, and I'll end up leaving in anger before I actually tell her why I was there."

"Yeah, sounds about right. Alright, fine, I'll go now to tell her." Amethyst turned to run off before spinning abruptly back to face James. "Dad?"

"Yeah honey?"

"Did you get anywhere on what I asked of you? You know, looking into Max Keenan for me?"

"Yeah, but not all that far sweetie." James sighed again, wrapping an arm around Amethyst's shoulders as he led her to the entrance of the building. He handed her a silver usb stick and wrapped her fingers around the device, squeezing her fingers in a silent warning. "What I've found is on here. Between us, right?"

"Yeah, always dad. Now, I need to run. I've gotta go grab the bus to the Jeffersonian."

"Wait." He stopped her and handed her a set of car keys. "I know you can drive; just don't let the FBI know just yet, okay? I'll find a way for you to legally drive by the end of the week at the most. I hope. I love you honey."

"Love you too dad. See ya."

"See you later Am."

…

"Mom."

Brennan glanced up from her desk, surprised to see her daughter stood in the doorway to her office, a confused looking Booth stood directly behind her. She offered them a smile as she set down the x-rays she'd been manually examining from a Limbo case. Standing, she waved them to sit with her on the couch, sitting down. Amethyst waited for Booth to sit down beside Brennan before moving to sit on the other side of her mother, making sure the anthropologist was placed in the middle of herself and the puzzled FBI agent. "What's going on? Do we have a case?" Brennan asked.

"Uh, no, not exactly. I just… I have something to tell you. And it's not good news." Amethyst fiddled with the hem of her navy shirt until Brennan gently moved her fingers away from the fabric. "It's about the pig farmer. The one from your mom's case."

"What? Just spit it out, gem." Booth advised softly.

"No, don't spit Amethyst. You know I don't like spitting." Brennan countered, sending Booth a look that clearly conveyed her thoughts on what he'd said. Booth just smiled in return.

"It's an expression mom." Amethyst told her with a wry grin that quickly faded. "Vince McVicar is dead. Killed this morning in prison. I'm sorry, I don't know more than that."

Brennan's face instantly lost all its colour and Booth's arm wrapped around her shoulders, his free hand reaching up to cup the back of her head as Brennan buried her face into his chest. Booth glanced at Amethyst over his partner's shoulder. "How'd you find it out so fast? No-one's even called me yet, and I'm on the list of people to be called the instant anything happens to that… that..."

"Waste of space?" She suggested with a little shrug.

Booth fixed her with a hard look. "Talk. Now, Amethyst."

"I, uh, fine. My dad found me at college this morning and told me. Don't ask me how he knew, because I don't know the answer to that." Amethyst shot him an identical expression in return, silently telling him to just let it go, at least around her mother. She stood, wiping her hands on her jeans nervously. "Look, I had to tell you, but I also need to meet Daisy for lunch. I'll see what else I can get for you and call you, okay mom?"

Brennan nodded, pulling away from Booth long enough to smile up at Amethyst. "Thanks. And tell your dad thanks too, alright?"

"Yeah, will do. You gonna be okay mom?"

"I always am."

"Well, I brought Booth with me for a reason. Let him be your rock mom." Amethyst told her with a small smile. She knew exactly what Brennan needed and at that moment, it wasn't her. It was the man holding her so tenderly and patiently that the scientist needed to get her through most of it, at least. That was why she was disappearing so quickly. She just wanted Brennan to deal with it properly, without withdrawing, and Amethyst figured that Booth was the guy to do it.

"Booth is a human being, Ammi, not an inanimate-"

"Yeah, another expression mom. It means let him be the one to listen to you and support you, okay? I gotta go." Amethyst slipped from the office as Brennan reclaimed her position with her head buried in Booth's shirt, just letting him hold her as the news washed over her. McVicar was dead. Dead. She just didn't understand, couldn't wrap her head around the fact that her one lead to find out where her dad was had been murdered in prison.

"Hey. Talk to me Bones." Booth tilted her chin up gently so he could see her eyes. "Tell me what's going on in that beautiful brain of yours."

"I… I just… I can't…" She gestured almost helplessly, unable to really articulate what her brain was trying to process. Booth nodded knowingly and pulled her back into his chest, embracing her tightly.

"That's fine Bones. Everything's going to be alright."

"You can't promise that Booth." Her voice was muffled slightly by his shirt.

"Yeah, I can. Because I'm gonna try damn hard to make sure it's true." Booth jumped a little as his phone vibrated from inside his suit pocket. He grabbed the cell phone and opened the new text he'd received, frowning slightly as he found that it was from Amethyst, who'd only left a couple of minutes earlier.

 _The guy who killed pig farmer is called Mitchell Downs. Same holding facility as McVicar. Just so you know. – Ammi._

"Who was that?" Brennan asked curiously as Booth fired back his thanks to her. Booth glanced up and smiled a little.

"Ammi just told me who killed McVicar. We could go question him if you wanted."

"Yeah, let's go." Brennan jumped up, glad to have something tangible to focus on rather than just a nameless entity.

"Alright, just give me a couple of minutes. I need to go talk to Cam."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." Booth's smile widened over her disgruntled expression as he walked to her and pressed a kiss to her head. "I got to make sure she knows her real place in the squint squad."

…

"Hey, I'm borrowing Bones for a while." Booth mentioned as he stuck his head into the autopsy room. Cam shot him a reluctant frown.

"If you have to."

"It's about her mother's murder and her father's disappearance." Booth added by way of explanation, stepping fully into the room and allowing his face to fall into a similar frown. "Why did you take this job Camille?"

"Why shouldn't I, Seeley?" Cam shot back. "And she dedicated a book to you, so…"

"Don't start. It's a legitimate case." Booth's tone was laced with warnings for her not to push it.

"I know. I read the file." Cam stated. Booth sighed and turned to leave, figuring that he wasn't going to get anywhere with her. Her voice stopped him in the doorway. "Why hasn't she confronted me yet?"

"About what?"

"Me being parachuted in over her head. Finds me intimidating right?"

He span back around and couldn't stop the laughter bubbling up in his chest from bursting out. The very idea that his girlfriend would be intimidated by her was entirely laughable. Murderers didn't intimidate Brennan, so there was no way Cam would succeed in it.

"Hey, I intimidate people." Cam protested indignantly.

"Yeah… Bones doesn't intimidate. You won't succeed in that." Booth informed her proudly. "Listen, she hasn't passed judgement on you yet, but I'll give you a word of warning. Don't think you can best her, especially not here. This is her house and her people. Think about that before you try and undermine or berate her. You won't come out of it on top." He turned to leave again. "Have a good day, Camille."

 **To Be Continued…**


	3. Chapter 3

**(A/N): I'm still alive guys! I know, I know, I'm a terrible person for not updating pretty much anything in forever! I'm so sorry! I don't have much time for review time, but I'll do my best and I apologise if I have missed anyone out.**

 **Loverofbones: Oh thanks, I wanted Booth to pretty much tell Cam where he stood. I like Cam, but not too much when she first arrives.**

 **YellowShadess: Thanks! I'll try, but I'm terrible at it. Hopefully, with being on my laptop more, I'll write more.**

 **GalaxieGurl: The original one is called After The Storm Blows Through, and it should be there, but I think it's a few stories down. Just let me know if you have more trouble finding it. And as for Heaven Can Wait, no, I'm just having a bit of trouble writing it. Difficult scene to write, that's all, along with a bit of writer's block.**

 **Allthingstvshows: thank you**

 **Guest: Aww thank you!**

 **Guest: Thank you, I like changing the episodes to suit my needs too.**

 **Allthingstvshows (2): Aww I'm sorry**

 **IHEARTSEELEYJBOOTH: Yeah, at the beginning of the first story I thought about making her about Parker's age and doing it as them being friends in school but I thought that'd be better as a different fic than this one. I had her fully formed in my head and a teenager works better with little things I've written about later seasons that are collecting dust on my usb.**

 **Allthingstvshows (3): I'm back sweetie!**

 **Okay, so I am back at university now and not working as much, which translates to me being on my laptop or ipad a lot more now and with more time on my hands that I can actually write in. I hope to have the next chapter of Heaven Can Wait up by the end of this week and we will roll from there! The next chapter of this will jump forwards a few episodes, because I want one with a united Booth/Brennan against Epps haha! As always, let me know what you think.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 3**

Parker glanced up at Amethyst with a look of quiet contemplation covering his small features. He'd just turned five, and thought that that made him much more grown up and able to understand those around him more easily. He'd had a massive birthday cake and loads of presents, though his favourite ones had been from his dad, Brennan and Amethyst.

" _Okay, time to open your next present!" Rebecca handed a smartly wrapped rectangular present to Parker, who ripped off the paper without bothering to see who it was from. Only Booth's proud smile showed any indication that the gift was from him. Parker let out a squeal of delight as the paper finally gave way to reveal a whole Lego set for a police station, a smaller one depicting a science lab resting just beneath it._

" _This is awesome! I love it sooooo much!" Parker exclaimed, digging around the shreds of wrapping paper until he found the attached tag. Beaming wide, he set his gifts down and launched himself into his dad's arms. "Thanks daddy!"_

" _No problem bub, I'm glad you like it." Booth hugged him tightly before setting him back on his feet. "Why don't you open the rest of your presents now?"_

" _Okay." Parker plopped down beside two similar packages, wrapped in almost identical paper. Instead of ripping them open, he took a quick look at the tags. A slightly larger one was from Brennan, the smaller one from Amethyst. Smiling even wider than he did with his dad's presents, he tore the paper off of the anthropologist's gift first, letting out another squeal as he pulled out his very own blue Jeffersonian lab coat with his name stitched into the left hand side just above the pocket, a pair of lab goggles and a small, simple science kit where he could make things bubble, fizz and blow up, all things that Parker absolutely loved. He then tore the wrapping off of Amethyst's gift, letting out his final squeal as he found a new catcher's mitt for his tee-ball games and a Flyers jersey a couple of sizes too big for him, so that he had time to grow into it properly and get more use from it. Jumping up, he threw himself onto Brennan's lap and hugged her tightly before clambering over to give Amethyst the same treatment. "I love you guys!"_

"Ammi?"

"Yeah Parker?" Amethyst asked as she led him to the park that they often visited after school. Parker loved the carousel and Amethyst loved the peacefulness that surrounded the place.

"Why're daddy and Tempe so sad all the time?" Parker asked, his bottom lip sticking out slightly in concentration as he watched the teenager's face, trying to deduce her facial expressions like he'd seen his dad do all the time.

"Ah… You remember the funeral we went to just before my mom went away?" Amethyst asked, continuing when Parker nodded enthusiastically, happy he was getting a real answer from someone. "Well, Tempe is sad because her mommy isn't here anymore and she can't find her daddy."

"Oh. That is sad. Is daddy sad because Tempe's sad?"

"Yeah, he is. He wants to make it better, and he can't, not unless he finds her dad for her.

"I hope daddy finds Tempe's daddy." Parker confided with a quick nod of the head. "I lost daddy in the market once and I was really scared when I couldn't find him. Tempe must be as scared as I was." He tugged slightly on the elder's hand. "Can I get her some candy to make her feel better?"

"Sure, that'd absolutely make her smile." Amethyst agreed with a smile of her own. Sometimes, that little boy was just too sweet.

…

"I've got no reason to lie; I mean I'm facing life at least. Probably going to get executed." Mitchell Downs shrugged, looking unapologetic as he slumped in his seat opposite Booth and Brennan.

"What did you do?" Brennan asked, curious despite herself.

"Mr Downs killed his entire family." Booth filled in for her.

"I killed your friend, 'cause he cut in the cafeteria line to snag the last orange juice. Broke off a sharpened toothbrush in his jugular." Downs shrugged again.

Brennan nearly shook with anger, but a glance to Booth calmed her enough to address him once again. "Mr Downs, the man you killed-"

"McVicar." Downs interrupted, looking vaguely amused.

"Yes. He's not my friend. He would never have been my friend. McVicar killed… he killed my mother." Brennan let out in a rush, feeling a little bit of relief for saying the words allowed, though the grief was much more prominent.

"You come here to thank me or something then?"

"No, I haven't." Brennan shot him a glare. "He was my last chance at finding out what I really need to know. McVicar might have known something about my father, whom I can't ask, because he left me a voicemail telling me to stop looking for him."

"I'll tell you what," Downs said, leaning in closer, bending over his cuffed hands with an almost sympathetic look for the scientist. "Maybe you should… take McVicar's murder as another message from Max. One he didn't use a phone for." He leant back and signalled for the guard to take him away, shooting her another strange look, one that screamed respect and slight fear. Booth somehow doubted the look was caused by Brennan herself. He didn't know whether to be mad or grateful that Max had clearly scared even the most hardened criminals into staying away from his daughter.

"I didn't say my father's name was Max." Brennan pointed out, a crease appearing in her forehead as her brow furrowed.

"Did you perform a hit for Max Keenan?" Booth asked as the guard led Downs away. He repeated himself in a louder voice, blinking a little in surprise as Downs actually paused and turned back to the partners.

"Take it as a sign from God."

…

"Figured out whodunit yet?" Amethyst asked teasingly as Booth and Brennan let themselves into Booth's apartment, both looking exhausted but content. Booth nodded to her, a small smile gracing his features as he took in her teasing tone. He was happy that she felt at ease enough to tease him.

Parker bounded up to the adults with his hands firmly behind his back. "Tempe?"

"Yes, Parks?" Brennan asked, lowering herself to her knees so she was on the same level as the little boy. Parker took a deep breath before producing a Hershey's bar from behind his back, nearly thrusting it into her face.

"This is for you." He exclaimed. "Ammi told me why you're sad, but candy always cheers me up, so I bought you one."

A smile washed over her as she took the bar from the excited child and she hugged him close. "Thank you Parker. This is the best gift you could have given me."

"I thought so. I hope you and daddy find your daddy soon." Parker commented with a small grin and flounced off back to the living room, where he'd been watching cartoons.

"I have to get him back to his mom in an hour, but we can all eat dinner together first. I called Sid and he's saving us a table at Wong Foo's." Amethyst offered them both a warm smile before joining Parker in the living room. Both Booth and Brennan could hear her convincing Parker to put his shoes on along with a jacket so he didn't get cold.

"Booth." It was all she needed to say as Booth gathered her up into a tight hug, knowing she needed the comfort.

"My kid's sweet. Who knew?" He joked, rocking her slightly as her fingers clutched at the back of his suit jacket. "C'mon Bones, it's alright. We'll find your dad and you can give him hell once we do, okay?"

Brennan finally pulled back, wiping at her eyes a little as she nodded, reaching up to kiss him, her hands tangling into his hair as his hands lowered to her waist, pulling her further into his body. They were interrupted by a loud cough. Pulling apart, breathless and slightly embarrassed, they found their respective children stood a couple of feet from them, ready to go.

"Can we leave or are you two too busy?" Amethyst asked with a raised eyebrow, causing them to blush a little more as Booth opened the front door and ushered everyone outside.

"No, no, let's go."

…

Amethyst sat beside the window watching the moon. She would have been watching the stars, but there was too much pollution to do so in the middle of DC, so she didn't bother trying.

"Can I ask you something?"

Amethyst turned away from the window and smiled at Booth, who stood in the doorway to the bedrooms and bathroom hesitantly. "Sure."

"Why don't you want me to ask about your dad in front of Bones?"

She shrugged a little. "They're… explosive together. Not like mom and you, where you make fireworks, but I mean like they go off at one another and it's not pretty. They're better now, but sometimes, I know it hurts mom to look at my dad with whoever he's with at the time and just think about what might have happened if she'd stayed with him."

"That's not what I meant, though thanks for sharing." Booth lowered himself into a chair opposite the teenager, fixing her with a firm stare, one that practically yelled for her to tell the complete, unfiltered truth. She sighed, standing up and moving past him to go back to bed. She paused by his shoulder and rested her hand on it.

"I can't tell you about my father. That's just the way it works. You'll have to live with it."

"Gem, just answer me one thing."

"What?"

"Is he dangerous?"

"To mom? No."

Booth stared after her long after she'd disappeared from sight. It hadn't escaped his notice that she hadn't answered his question, not properly. Sighing, he resolved to interrogate her more another day and went back to bed, smiling a little as his partner instinctively rolled to rest on his chest, her even breathing slowly lulling him into a restful sleep.

 **To Be Continued…**


	4. Chapter 4

**(A/N): Okay, longer chapter for you guys, because I love you! I know it's been a while, but I wasn't sure how to go about it after how I ended last chapter. But anyway, this chapter is pretty episode heavy, with The Boy in the Shroud, or 2x03. But it is review time!**

 **ZinaR:** Aww thank you. I'm sorry this has taken so long. I really need a better balance between my fanfics and my uni work, don't I?

 **Allthingstvshows (1):** Haha, the initial fighting between them was bad, but it petered out mostly before Booth and Brennan met. Ammi just gets overly concerned sometimes. I'll consider it though, or maybe a oneshot or something. But only if I get inspiration for it.

 **Chyrs:** Haha, Ammi's dad is supposed to be mysterious. I wanted a character that Booth didn't automatically know everything about, and he will play more into later plot ideas I have swimming round this overrun brain of mine haha. Bits and pieces will be given though hehe, I am evil, I suppse.

 **Guest:** Aww thank you and yes, it is nice to see that she has something out of her life at the lab, though I agree, Booth did still enter at the right time. There's only so much a child can do, even one as scarily smart as Ammi.

 **Guest (2):** I'm fine, thanks

 **Allthingstvshows (2,3 and 4):** Hey sweetie, I'm fine, just taking a while to think things up right now, but I hope you like this chapter. Thank you for caring so much, it makes me happy to hear from you, even just asking where I am.

 **Alright guys! I will leave you to read this chapter, and I will work on the next one asap, though no guarantees it will be as long as this one is. Please, as always, let me know what you think butterflies! Love you all.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 4**

Brennan glared at Booth and Cam as they built up on the other's theories, culminating in assigning blame to the foster kid girlfriend of their latest victim. Brennan knew she shouldn't be getting so angry over it, but in truth, she felt alone on the side of the evidence, or at least on not jumping to conclusions based on no evidence other than the girl being in the foster system.

"So Dylan tells the girlfriend they're breaking up." Booth posited, addressing Cam more than his partner. Cam immediately jumped onto his train of thought.

"She whacks him across the carotid with a pipe."

"And pushes him out the window." Booth finished decisively with a slight nod.

"Exactly." Cam agreed. Booth's face dropped into confusion as he finally noticed the glare Brennan was directing at the pair of them, not sure if it was what they were saying or that they were stood so close together. He knew that Cam and Brennan still didn't like each other, despite treating each other with cold civility.

"What? What's with the stink eye? It's just a theory." He defended himself. Brennan fought the urge to roll her eyes as she addressed Cam.

"There was cheap nail polish in the box of Kelly's belongings. You should see if there's a match." She told the pathologist coolly.

"Find some hair, match the DNA on that, then get started on the murder weapon." Cam ignored Brennan's suggestion, focusing on Booth instead. Neither Booth nor Cam noticed the anger that flashed through Brennan's sharp blue gaze. Sighing silently, she stood up and grabbed her lab coat, determined to do her job in spite of the odds against her and her task in finding the evidence.

"Yeah." Booth agreed with Cam before frowning as he finally noticed his girlfriend annoyed stride towards the door of her office. "Where are you going?"

"I thought before we arrest Kelly Morris for murder based solely on the fact that she's a foster kid, we might want to find the place where Dylan Crane actually died." Brennan shot at them coldly, pulling her hair out of the collar of her lab coat and fixing them both with a glare, though it was slightly more intense when pointed in Cam's direction. "Point of fact, the pipe, if that's even what it was, was not the murder weapon. The evidence, if anybody cares, shows that Dylan Crane died from a fall." She rolled her eyes at their incredulous looks and stormed off, leaving them in her office.

She slipped around the corner, out of sight from the pair in her office and placed her head against the wall. It was so hard, especially this case. Why was she up against everyone else? She jumped a little as Angela appeared beside her and gently tugged the anthropologist into her office, where she had set up a video call on the Angelator. As Brennan approached the holographic square, Amethyst's head popped up in the middle, offering her mother a smile.

"Hey mom." She frowned, taking in Brenann's worn out expression. "Talk to me."

"It's nothing; I'm fine." Brennan denied, out of habit more than anything else. Amethyst's eyes narrowed but she nodded all the same.

"Alright, I'll talk to you later about it. Don't think you can get out of it." She warned, pasting her best stern look on her face. "Until then, could you help me with a question I got stuck on in class? I want my notes finished before I have to pick Parker up from school. Becca's got late cases tonight, so I won't be home until late."

"Sure, what is it?" Brennan relaxed as Amethyst explained the problem she had. She could count on her daughter to provide enough distraction or support or even both, should the elder ever need it, usually without questions asked. She sighed a little. Now if only she could get through the case without completely losing her temper with everyone, then she'd be able to compartmentalise once more.

…

Brennan took off running after the teenager, only vaguely hearing Booth's shouts as she overtook him in pursuit of the runner. She recognised Dylan's jacket as she took her turn to yell after the boy. "We're not gonna hurt you!" She caught up to him and grabbed the back of the jacket, flinging the boy to the ground with a thud, wincing a little at the sound. "Okay, I hurt you a little bit, but that's only because you ran." The boy spat up at her and she glared down at him in disgust as she wiped it from her face. Booth and the two sandwich people caught up to them. Booth shot her a disapproving look for going after him without waiting for him to get in front, but didn't verbalise it as he hoisted the boy up and took him inside the warehouse, keeping a sharp eye on him as he called in the people he needed. Finally, he turned his attention back on the boy they'd caught, ignoring the small part of his mind that had wandered to what exactly had been running through his partner's mind when she'd decided to take the kid down on her own.

"You can't ask me nothing without a social worker being present." The boy shot out instantly, clearly knowing the script to be followed. Booth sighed, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not questioning you." He denied. "We're just… we're talking, okay? Here. Want some gum?"

Brenna barely held back a smirk at his tactic, recalling a few times the police had attempted to 'talk' with her. The gum tactic hadn't worked back then, and she seriously doubted it would work with the blonde teen sat before them.

"Yeah, like that's gonna make me trust you." The boy snorted, though he took the gum anyway. Brennan knew the motive for a change, based on her own experience. As a foster child, you accepted anything that was free, especially if you weren't going to get into trouble for it later.

"I'm just asking your name."

"C." He finally answered with a slight shrug.

"Does that stand for anything?" Brennan finally spoke up, eyeing him knowingly.

"Carter. I'm not saying if that's my first or my last name."

"Why'd you run?" Booth questioned.

"'Cause this lady was chasing me." He gestured at Brennan.

"Because you ran." She pointed out.

"Yeah, it's a brain twister."

"You know, that sweatshirt you're wearing belongs to a kid by the name of Dylan Crane." Booth mentioned, watching closely for recognition from Carter, who barely even blinked.

"Never heard of him."

"Where'd you get it?" Brennan asked, hands in her pockets.

Instead of answering, Carter shrugged out of the jacket. "I'm done with the hoody. You guys can have it." He handed it over to Booth, showing a list of names just below his right wrist. Booth glanced at them, unable to tell if they were crude tattoos or just permanent marker.

"What's with the names on the inside of your forearm there? What does that mean?"

Brennan glanced at the names, her eyes widening in recognition. She could still recall the names on the bottom of her own shoe, though there were only five, not including the time she spent at the group home, which constituted the majority of her time in social care and was where she aged out with Amethyst and James. _Davis, Thornbridge, Walker, Gregg, Harrison_. The names were inked on the bottom of old battered high tops stuck in the top of her closet at home.

"Guys I killed." Carter tried with a false sense of bravado.

"It's a list of foster homes." Brennan informed her partner in an even tone. "Ones that threw him out."

"Sometimes getting thrown out's the best-"

"Is the best thing that can happen. I know."

"You were in the system?" Carter asked, watching the anthropologist with a newfound respect in his eyes.

They finished up the interview quickly, receiving a bit of new information from Carter. On her way to the door, she paused and handed Carter a few twenties and her card. "Call me if you need help. I won't bring the FBI with me." She murmured to the boy, waiting until Carter nodded before letting him leave the building. She felt Booth's eyes on her but ignored it. She didn't want to deal with the pity in his eyes just yet.

…

" _Tempe?"_

"Hi. Can I meet you somewhere?" Brennan asked as she slipped from the office and made her way to the underground parking lot, hitting the fob button to unlock her car.

" _Sure, but is everything okay? Is Amethy-?"_

"Amethyst is fine. Still in class as far as I know. I just… I just need to talk to you." Brennan interrupted, waiting patiently as she heard a sigh from the other end of the line. She slid into the driver's seat and shut the door behind her, doing up her seatbelt one handed.

" _Alright. My office, half an hour. Is that alright?"_

"That's fine. I'll see you then." She hung up and put the car into drive, leaving the lab with a small weight lifted from her shoulders at getting away from the lab, which was becoming more and more oppressive the longer she and Cam were at loggerheads. Pulling onto the street, she didn't see Booth's SUV indicating to enter the Jeffersonian grounds, too focused on her own destination.

…

"Hey Ange, have you seen Bones?" Booth asked as he entered the artist's office. Angela looked up from her screen with a small head shake.

"Sorry, studly, she left about ten minutes ago." Angela set down her work and sighed. "I'm sorry. She was in kind of a rush. She grabbed her keys and cell and practically ran out. She didn't even take her lab coat off."

Booth felt his blood run cold, wondering just what had happened that would cause his partner to forget something like that and rush out like a bat out of hell. "Just a sec, Angela." He grabbed his cell and called Brennan, but it rang through to voicemail. Rather than leave a message, he cancelled the call and placed another one, this time to her daughter. It was picked up after four long rings.

" _Hello?"_

"Gem? Why are you whispering?"

" _Because I'm at the back of a lecture hall. I have classes all day. Why are you calling?"_

"Have you seen your mom today?"

" _This morning. She was a little annoyed, but that was all. Why?"_

"She ran out ten minutes ago and isn't answering her cell?"

" _She may still be driving. She doesn't answer her cell when she's driving."_ Booth sighed, relief trickling down his spine at her factual, rational explanations. _"I don't know where she is or where she's going Booth, but if she calls me I'll tell her to call you, alright?"_

"Okay. Thanks Ammi."

" _No problem."_ She hung up, leaving Booth to offer Angela a reassuring smile.

"Ammi said she'll be fine."

…

Brennan let herself into the spacious office, a little surprised at finding an entire wall of windows overlooking the city placed at the far end of the room, behind a beautiful mahogany desk that seemed almost out of place with the rest of the modern, minimalist décor.

"Tempe."

She span round at the unexpected voice, relaxing as she took in the other occupant of the room. "James. Thank you for agreeing to see me."

James Dante smiled gently as he gestured for her to take a seat on a black two seater couch, following her to sit down, watching her with a concerned expression. "I didn't expect to hear from you. It's not Christmas." They shared a smile at the reminder of the only time they usually got along. "Is this something to do with your mother's case?"

Brennan eyes him warily. "You told Ammi that Vince McVicar was dead, didn't you?"

"Guilty as charged Tempe." He shrugged. "I knew you'd take it better from our daughter than you would from me. I don't have any more information than what Amethyst has, unfortunately."

"That's not why I'm here. There's a case at work, and… I'm not really sure if the circumstances surrounding it is influencing me, or is influencing everyone else around me."

"Why don't you just tell me about the case?"

"A teenage boy was found a few days ago. He had a girlfriend, who's in the foster system. Everyone else has automatically placed her in the role of murderer." Brennan concisely explained her problem to him, sighing a little.

James' brow furrowed a little. "Tempe, are you the only one with personal experience of the system there?"

"Yes." Normally she'd question the need for questions, but she knew him well enough that he always asked questions for a reason that she would know about sooner or later, usually sooner.

"Then you are the only one to have any idea what that poor girl is going through."

"I want to find her, but they want to arrest her."

"Alright. Is there no-one there that will even listen to your view of this?" He rubbed her back gently, trying to calm her.

"No-one that will understand without an explanation behind it. You know I'm no good with that."

"You're better than you give yourself credit for, Temp. Now, what do you want to do about it?"

"I… I want to examine the evidence, _all_ the evidence, and find the murderer from that, rather than assume the worst of Kelly straight away."

"And if she does turn out to be the killer?"

"Then she should be arrested. But through evidence, not simple prejudice."

"Then that's what you'll do. And I'll make a call, so you won't face as much opposition." He winked at her as she finally felt peaceful, knowing she had a plan and that she knew how to execute it.

"Thanks James. I didn't know who else to talk to. Usually, I'd talk to Booth but…"

"Tempe, are you and Booth…?"

"Don't start James. It's my life." Brennan shot out defensively as she stood, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him. James' hands shot up in surrender.

"Tempe, I'm not kicking up a fuss over this." He told her. Brennan frowned.

"Oh, why not? You have with everyone else I've seen since I gave you your ring back."

"Ammi read me the riot act." He shrugged at her confused look. "She yelled at me and warned me not to do anything in regards to yours and Agent Booth's relationship. Oh and Ammi has that ring, by the way. I gave it to her a long time ago."

"Why? To both pieces of information." She clarified quickly.

"Ammi told me that you're happy and that Agent Booth is a good guy. I don't want to get in the middle of that, especially if it would cost me my daughter. Amethyst warned me that I'd lose her if I interfered without her express consent." He explained, hurt and acceptance shining in his eyes. "As for the ring; she asked me about it and I showed it to her. I gave it to her as a reminder that her parents did love each other once upon a time." James stood up and reached out for Brennan's shoulder. "I just have one question for you: Are you happy?"

Brennan nodded as James pulled her into a loose hug. She may not admit it very often, even to herself, but she was happy, happier than she'd been in a long time where her personal relationships were concerned. Pulling back from the hug, she said goodbye and left, feeling a renewed sense of hope for the investigation and also for her personal life.

…

Brennan resisted the urge to smirk as she spotted Cam glaring at her desk, her office phone practically glued to her ear. She hadn't asked James who he was calling, but it did seem to be having the effect she needed to get justice without everyone trying to manipulate things. She nearly jumped as Booth appeared in front of her, looking worried.

"Bones. There you are. I was… worried. Where were you?"

"I don't have to tell you everything, Booth." She scowled, pushing past him into her office, setting down her bag and sitting down at her desk. Her cell phone beeped, indicating a new message. She glanced at it, finding that anything was better than what was going on around her.

 _Take it easy on Booth. He's overprotective and worried. It makes for an overbearing combination. Say hi to dad if you haven't already left. Ammi x_

Brennan sighed, silently admitting that her daughter had a point, though she was more than a little reluctant to admit it out loud, or to Amethyst herself. She glanced up at Booth, who had dropped down into one of the chairs opposite her desk and was fixing her with a concerned expression. "I was… lacking perspective on this case, so I went to see James about it."

"James?"

"Ammi's father."

"Oh. Why'd you not come to me instead, Bones? I could've helped." Booth questioned, trying not to feel hurt that she went to her ex over him. Brennan shook her head sadly.

"No. Whilst James and I do not see eye to eye on many things, I knew he would understand me on this subject." She sighed again. "You agree with everyone else out there, even if you aren't as vocal as some about it." She gestured to the lab outside the office. "Kelly Morris killed her boyfriend. And all your evidence is that she's in the foster system." She shook her head again. "I felt… alone. I knew James would understand that and help me decide what to do next."

"Bones…" Booth trailed off, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck. He felt stupid. Of course his partner would feel this case more than usual when it involved the system. "You can see yourself in Kelly's shoes?"

"I don't know what that means."

"You can see it from Kelly's perspective? Her point of view in life?"

"Ah, right. Yes, I suppose so. I recall all the assumptions made about me when I was in care, especially when I was with Amethyst, or James and I were with Amethyst. So many people judged us without knowing any of the facts. They simply made up their own stories and evidence to support their version of my situation and disposition." Brennan shuddered a little at the memories her words invoked, though she managed to keep a tight lid on most of them. "I see you all doing the same with Kelly."

"Okay. To say I'm sorry would probably sound hollow right now. Next time though, just talk to me Bones. I'm not a mind reader, but I want to know." Booth ran a hand through his hair in thought. "What would you like to do now? In the case, I mean."

"Hmm. That's up to Cam, isn't it?" She asked with just a hint of bitterness. Booth shook his head.

"No Bones, I asked you. What do _you_ wanna do?"

"I think… I think we shouldn't close off any avenue of investigation. We stay on all the evidence and see where it leads us. Like we did before Cam."

"Then let's get to it." Booth stood simultaneously with Brennan and placed a hand on her arm gently. "We'll talk more when we get home, alright Bones? We can talk about whatever you want to, or need to."

"Alright Booth. Let's solve the case first though."

"After you, milady."

"Booth…"

 **TBC…**


	5. Chapter 5

**(A/N): What is this, an update pretty quickly?! What is wrong with me?! Haha, just kidding. In all honesty, I had this already written up and I won't be updating at least in the next week due to being heaped under a massive pile of coursework that I swear is trying to kill me. I have 2000 words due by Friday, and another 2000 the week after. Why did I agree to higher education? Haha, but anyway, I figured you all should have a new chapter whilst I've got it to give to you. P.S. for those still awaiting a Heaven Can Wait update, that will be the next thing I work on in my procrastination. I finally found my plan for it, woo hoo! So, onto review time butterflies!**

 **Loverofbones:** Aww thank you. Yeah, he was, but it's only mentioned really briefly in After The Storm Blows Through, so I don't blame you for that. I nearly forgot about it myself haha.

 **Allthingstvshows:** Haha, I love your reviews. They always make me smile and laugh. I swear, I should read them in public, because people think I've gone crazy. I'm adding a little backstory bit by bit, as you'll see down below, so I hope you like it. And thank you so much, you're too sweet, I think I'm gonna cry.

 **OneWriterGirl97:** Thanks!

 **Guest:** Everything's fine, thank you for asking, I'm just really busy a lot of the time. Aww, that was the first reason I made an account, to keep track of stories I loved. Now I mainly write them haha, so it's funny how that changed. Still, thank you!

 **ZinaR:** Yeah, sometimes, I like keeping it close, to see just how similar, yet different, things would be, if that makes any sense. And here is the next chapter, so I hope you like it.

 **Okay, well, I still own nothing Bones related unfortunately, but I finally watched the last episode aired, and can I just say, I laughed so much in it, especially the beginning and the end. That should save people from spoilers, but will also be understood by people who have watched it, I think. Anyway, read on and I hope you like it. I will update my stories as soon as I possibly can, but for now, I need to dive into the world of academics. I'll see you when I resurface.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 5**

"I can't work like this!" Brennan burst out, early the following day. Despite the call James had placed on her behalf, it seemed that Cam was still intent on being difficult. No matter how much she tried, and how much Booth attempted several explanations, she simply couldn't wrap her mind around it. Surely getting justice was the main objective for everyone? Didn't that overcome any petty differences?

"Are you telling me I should start looking for your replacement, Dr Brennan?" Cam asked coolly, not looking particularly bothered by the idea of replacing her, something that Angela picked up on more than Brennan.

"Dr Saroyan, I don't want to overly dramatic or anything, but if you lose Brennan, you lose us all." Angela warned, the serious note in the voice catching Cam's attention. "So please, just stop."

"Really?" Cam asked incredulously, wondering just how the anthropologist garnered such blind loyalty in the others she worked with that they would follow her willingly into unemployment.

"Really. And Booth'd go too." Angela added firmly, knowing that she wouldn't want to lose him as well as the entire lab team.

"In the interests of this investigation, I am going to defer to you, Dr Brennan." Cam relented eventually, taking note of the tense stances the other two women held, even after she agreed to defer to the auburn haired woman.

"Thank you." Brennan nodded respectfully.

"Thank you." Angela echoed.

"But I will start the search for your replacement." Cam added as she left the room, leaving Angela and Brennan alone.

"Oh well. Do you think Ammi would mind if I taught classes at her college?" Brennan asked her friend with a small grin that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"I thought you already taught some classes there." Angela pointed out with a smirk at the thought of that actually happening. Brennan shrugged a little.

"The occasional guest lecture, yes. However, most people in those lectures are there voluntarily and simply wish to hear about my novels."

"Well, a normal teen would be embarrassed, but Ammi's as unique as you are sweetie, so she'd probably be fine with it. Bren, promise me something."

"What, Ange?"

"Don't jump before you're pushed."

"I… don't know what that means. I'm not jumping anywhere."

"Sweetie. Don't quit. Make it so she has to fire you. Promise me that."

"Alright I promise, though I don't really see the need to promise you such a thing."

"As long as you've promised. Now, let's go see Hodgins."

…

"Booth, if Dr Brennan were to quit…"

"What?" Booth asked in disbelief. He knew that Amethyst had mentioned that she was considering it a few weeks ago, but he knew his partner, and knew she wouldn't back down far enough to quit. She was too stubborn for that. He frowned a little. There had to be something Cam wasn't mentioning.

"If she were to leave the Jeffersonian…" Cam elaborated slowly.

"Well, the squints would flee this institution like the French army." Booth told her with a smile, imagining the scientists all scurrying out of the lab in his girlfriend's wake.

"And you?"

"Well, I do as I'm ordered." Booth replied sarcastically. "Just do as I'm told, as always."

"No, you don't Seeley."

"Okay, here we go." Booth straightened up and shot her a fierce look usually saved for the interrogation room. "What's going on Camille?"

"What if I fired her? What would you do?"

"I'm with Bones, Cam. All the way. Don't doubt it for a second." His face became like ice. The thought of being without Brennan left him in physical pain and he knew that should he be asked to choose between his girlfriend and his job, there would be no question about which one he chose. Like he'd just informed Cam; he was with Bones all the way. He softened his facial expression as Hodgins interrupted with information on the rose found in Dylan's hand before offering his old friend a small piece of information, something he knew his partner would never share voluntarily with the pathologist. "Cam, maybe you just got off on the wrong foot with this case with Brennan because, uh, she was a foster kid as a teenager." He missed out mentioning Amethyst out of habit more than anything else. He knew his girlfriend was wary of who she told about her daughter, not wanting her fame as either a forensic anthropologist or an author to affect her little girl's life.

"Oh." Cam's face dropped in understanding. "Why didn't she tell me?"

"Bones, she doesn't do that. That's not who she is." Booth turned to leave but span back around at the last moment. "Oh, by the way, I didn't just tell you that."

…

"I… I don't think I can do this." Brennan turned to leave, but was stopped by a well pointed glare.

"You need to fix this." Amethyst placed her hands on her hips, still glaring at her mother. "You said so yourself that you don't want to quit, and the pair of you cannot continue like you have been. It's getting on my nerves and I haven't even been in the lab recently." She gave Brennan a small push to the diner entrance. "So go. Make nice. And then there'll be a tub of ice cream at home waiting with your name on it."

"Ammi, I really…" Brennan didn't have time to finish as her daughter pushed her through the doors and into the diner, slipping out of sight before Cam caught sight of her. Amethyst figured that the pair already had enough to talk about without adding her into the mix.

"Dr Saroyan." Brennan greeted stiffly. Cam seemed to notice, as she gestured for Brennan to take a seat opposite her.

"Dr Brennan. D'you want some fries?" She gestured to her own plate. "You need to save me from myself with these. They're just so good."

Brennan ignored the fried potatoes, clasping her hands together before finally looking the other woman in the eyes. "We have a problem."

"We do. Any ideas how to solve it?"

"Well… I mean, it's not all my fault. I… this case was difficult for me because I was a foster child." Brennan admitted, recalling early conversations between herself and Booth about offering up something of herself. Cam nodded, not looking very surprised.

"Listen, I have no doubt that you are… crazy smart. I have to mull things over sometimes. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Yes, I just always considered it a waste of time." Brennan replied bluntly, making Cam laugh.

"Well, I need it sometimes. So… have you ever played Monopoly?"

"A couple of times." Brennan shrugged. "I didn't like it. James always said I hadn't the patience for it. I personally just did not see the point in pretending to buy and sell property with fake money."

"Okay… what I'm thinking of would be like a Get Out Of Jail Free card. A free pass that'd allow you to defy me without explanation or recrimination." Cam explained, her nose scrunching up slightly. "And if you don't mind me asking; who's James?"

"Oh. How many would I get?"

"One a week?"

"Five per case?"

"Three per week." Cam offered as a final resort. Brennan mulled it over a short time before nodding.

"Alright, that sounds… acceptable." She finally took a fry from Cam's plate. "Booth told you I was in the foster system didn't he?"

"No… Okay, yes he did. Can you not tell him I caved and told you?"

"He's going to know the moment he sees us together."

"Yeah, he's the worst like that."

"Oh, and James is my ex… well, ex-fiancé. Is that even a phrase?"

"Yeah, it's a phrase." Cam assured her. "What happened?"

Brennan sighed. "I was just finishing up my undergraduate degree at Northwestern and was asked to go on a dig in the Middle East. James thought it was a bad idea. Things... escalated and we agreed to split up." She offered up the shortened version reluctantly. Cam nodded.

"Yeah, I've had a few exes like that. One broke up with me because I was one minute late to dinner. One." She held up a lone finger and laughed at Brennan's shocked face. "Yeah, I looked a lot like that at the time. Then again I had one that left me because his bunny rabbit told him that I was evil."

Brennan burst out laughing at that one. "No."

"Yeah. It was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever heard." Cam joined in, the two women picking at the fries as the sky darkened outside.

…

Amethyst glanced down the darkened hallway to her mother's room, slightly reassured at hearing Booth's snores and Brennan's heavy breathing emanating from the room at the end of the hallway. Tiptoeing down the hallway and slipping into the living room, she grabbed her laptop from the coffee table, where she'd accidentally left it earlier in the evening. Booting it up and throwing a panicked glance down the hall at the noise the computer made, she logged herself in and reached into the pocket of the hooded sweatshirt she wore over her pyjamas, bringing out a small flash drive and plugging it into one of the slots on the side of the device, blinking as the file explorer opened with a single folder shown to be on the flash drive. She dragged the cursor to rest over the folder icon, unsure as to whether or not to click on it. Taking one more glance down the hallway, she came to a decision and pressed down on the trackpad, the cursor clicking on the folder to open it.

"Okay dad, let's see what you've found on Max Keenan."

 **TBC…**


	6. Chapter 6

**(A/N): Hey guys! So, this chapter is Ammi heavy, I fully admit, but I think you'll like it. Okay, I hope you like it. There's a thing about sticky notes in this one, and I got it from what I do myself whenever I have coursework, so yeah… review time!**

 **Loverofbones:** I know, I hate them myself but somehow, I end up with them more often than not. Yeah, Cam seemed to grow on people and no-one seems to know exactly when or how haha

 **ZinaR:** Hmm, I hadn't thought much about that, but now you mention it, I'll see about putting that in, just for you.

 **Allthingtvshows:** Does that mean you liked it?

 **Chyrs:** I know, I'm sorry. Aww thank you, and yeah I didn't want a typical mother/daughter thing if you get what I mean, so I hope I got the balance right. And thank you, I hope you like this chapter.

 **Guest:** Thank you!

 **Allthingstvshows (2):** Haha, it only gets worse, let me assure you haha

 **Jbadillodavila:** Thank you

 **Allthingstvshows (3, 4 and 5):** Love you too, I'm sorry you're concerned, and I don't really speak Spanish, though I've always wanted to learn, but I think I can understand what you're saying there.

 **PineappleSmoothie3 . 0:** Wow, I'm so glad you like it! Even I'm looking forward to the rest, as I don't know where I'm taking it until I write it and you are so welcome! Enjoy this next chapter!

 **Whew, okay butterflies, a pretty long chapter by my standards here, and I hope you like it. I'm procrastinating, in case no-one can tell. But anyway, I'm not entirely sure what happened with this chapter as it snowballed and took on a life of its own, so I'm a little unsure about it and whether or not it's any good. But anyways, love you all and hopefully I will see you soon.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 6**

"Okay, why does it look like someone vomited sticky notes everywhere?" Booth asked in astonishment as he made his way into the living room, wearing a t-shirt and sweat pants, a rule he'd agreed to with Amethyst whilst Brennan was away visiting Russ. Amethyst didn't really care what he wore as long as he was somewhat dressed, and Booth respected that. Brennan shot him a warning look from the kitchen counter, where she sat drinking coffee from a mug decorated in pink sticky notes. Amethyst's head shot up from the living room floor like a meerkat, eyes dark rimmed and slightly bloodshot, evidence of having pulled an all-nighter.

"I use them to think." She ground out, pulling herself up off the floor and grabbing a mug covered in yellow sticky notes before moving to the kitchen and pouring herself a cup of coffee, drinking it black in three large gulps. Booth watched with a wince. Even he couldn't do that with coffee, needing just a splash of milk or cream in it to make it palatable. "I'll move them later."

"How's your dissertation coming along?" Brennan asked, finishing her own cup of coffee and setting the mug down on the counter rather than in the sink. Booth blinked for a moment in surprise. Brennan never left things out of place or dirty things out of the sink. Taking a closer look, he realised that his girlfriend couldn't put the mug in the sink due to the writing covering the sticky notes attached to the mug. He moved to remove the notes for her, but she stopped him with a slight shake of her head.

"Alright. I'll be better when it's finished and I've handed it in for submission. I have two weeks' break and then I'm onto my other one for final year." Amethyst yawned and rubbed at her eyes. Brennan nodded understandingly.

"Okay. Promise me that you'll get a nap in today, and you'll go to bed at a reasonable time tonight. I'll leave you money to get some lunch on the counter." Brennan stated calmly, ignoring Booth's badly stifled snort, no doubt over all the times he'd had to literally drag her away from work in order to sleep and eat.

"That's okay, mom. Dad's taking me out to lunch. Said something about being too much like you and he'd make sure I had three meals a day even if he had to full out drag me to lunch." Amethyst waved it off dismissively as Booth smirked at Brennan's surprised expression.

"See? Told you that you were difficult when it came to stopping work at a reasonable time." He murmured in her ear, smiling as he elicited a shiver from his girlfriend.

Amethyst watched out of the corner of her eye as her mother and Booth got ready for work hurriedly, dancing round each other in order to get all their things together. She absently held up Booth's gun in its holster from the coffee table where it had been left the night before, though it was now adorned in green sticky notes. "I want those notes back tonight." She mentioned as Booth took his service weapon from her with a sigh.

"I suppose I can't just take them off the holster and give them you now?"

"No, I have a system. They can be crumpled but not out of order."

She smirked to herself as Brennan ushered Booth out of the door, slamming it behind them with bickering over who was driving that day. It was true; she did have a particular order that couldn't be interrupted, but what she hadn't told the irritated agent was that she'd finished with those particular notes three hours earlier.

Once she was certain that they'd left and wouldn't be coming back for anything they may have forgotten in their rush, she saved and minimised her work, reopening the folder she'd first opened the night before on Max Keenan. Scanning over the scant information her father had managed to obtain for her, she closed the laptop and rushed to her room to get dressed and washed.

Running to the front door, she snagged her own car keys from the key hook. Neither Brennan nor Booth had seemed to notice the extra set of keys, or if they had, they hadn't asked her about them. True to his word, her dad had managed to find a way to get her a valid licence in case she was pulled over, but she personally didn't think she'd need it. Still, she was on a mission. She needed to find her grandfather before the FBI did.

…

"What do you think you're doing?"

Amethyst glanced up from her plate slowly, offering a half shrug before turning back to her dish. She was perched on a stool at the counter of a diner, eating what the waitress had called pancakes. Amethyst wasn't really sure what to call the food on her plate, but she was almost certain that they couldn't be called pancakes by any definition. She was only really eating it for show.

James sighed and perched himself on the stool next to hers. "Did you think I wouldn't find you?"

"No." Amethyst said after she'd swallowed the food in her mouth. "I knew you'd find me. I didn't try to hide anything."

"So then answer me this; why are you here?"

"You gave me the information, so why do you even need to ask?"

James frowned, leaning closer to her. "Wait. How'd you get this place from the information I gave you?"

Amethyst shot him a look that reminded him of her mother, one that practically screamed _'duh, how did you not see it?'_. "It was easy. Why were you following me?"

"You took off like a bat out of hell when I was pulling into the parking lot to come see you. So I tailed you."

"Not all the way here."

"Alright, I lost you for an hour or so and called in a favour for the gps on your cell. Happy?"

"Not at all. I've yelled at you before for doing that."

"Amethyst." James rolled his eyes but placed a hand on her bicep. "Come on, we're leaving."

"I don't want to." Amethyst pulled her arm from his grip. "I want to find him, for mom's sake."

"I'm looking for him and so is the FBI, Am."

"They want to arrest him, as do you, so don't try to appease me with that." She shot back with a pointed glance. "I just want answers. There's a difference. Let go of my arm." Amethyst directed her eyes down to her arm, where he'd grabbed her again. "Do I have to hurt you?"

"Let go of the young lady."

Father and daughter both looked up in surprise as an older man stood between them, his hand tight on James' wrist. "She doesn't want to go with you. Let her go." The man repeated slowly.

"It's alright. She's my daughter."

The man shrugged. "I don't care. That's still no reason to try and bodily force her anywhere. Is he bothering you honey?" He asked Amethyst, who was glancing between James and the older man curiously, inwardly smirking at the male posturing they were both attempting with one another, both trying to be seen as the alpha male.

"No, he's just worried about me, that's all." Amethyst told the man slowly, shooting her father a look that told him not to argue with her. She turned her face up and offered him a smile, which dropped into a confused frown as the man dropped his hold on James like he'd been burnt, though he was still staring at Amethyst with shock in his eyes.

"Right. Uh, well, I have to go." The man nodded to himself and hustled out of the diner, leaving father and daughter staring after him with identical expressions of confusion.

"What was that about?" James wondered aloud.

"Not a clue." Amethyst pulled her arm from his grasp again and stood, throwing a couple of bills onto the counter to cover what she'd bought. "And don't think I've forgotten about you tailing me, tracking my cell, and trying to force me out of this place."

"Am…"

"No. I'm going home. Alone. I'll see you next week."

"I'm your father." James commented angrily, trying to achieve some sort of acceptance of that from his daughter, trying to make her accept that he had some form of control over her actions as her father. Unfortunately for him, he'd also forgotten that Amethyst took after her mother in many ways, including on the issue of anyone but herself having control over her thoughts and actions. She glared at him darkly before adopting a blank mask that scared James more than the glare did. Nothing good came out of that eerily empty look.

"Yeah, and I set the custody arrangements." Amethyst returned evenly, keeping eye contact to ensure he got the message. "Like I said; I'll see you next week." She hopped off the stool and exited the shabby diner, getting into her car and driving off, leaving James sat at the counter, wondering what on earth he was supposed to do with his headstrong, independent daughter.

…

Max Keenan watched from across the street as the girl and her father had a hurried conversation, the man clearly becoming frustrated with something the girl had said, before she shot him an eerily familiar glare. He knew that glare because he'd seen it on his own daughter's face as a teenager, when he'd said she couldn't do as much as her brother could, because he was older and a boy. She'd sent him that very same glare before she'd told him that no-one owned her, no-one could control her, and that she'd do whatever she wanted to, whenever she wanted to. He smiled wistfully. How he missed his family.

He turned his attention back to the diner as the girl exited, clearly in an agitated mood, pressing the fob of a car key to unlock an expensive sports car at one end of the lot. She climbed in and backed out of the space, driving out of the lot and onto the road without even a glance at her father, whom she'd left behind in the diner. He sighed a little. Her eyes had shocked him, he admitted silently. They were the exact same shape and colour as his daughter's were. Oh well, there was no point dwelling on it, he decided. After all, there was no way she could be related to his Tempe. It was just a coincidence.

…

"Bones."

Brennan rolled her eyes at her partner's whining tone as he joined her on the platform. They'd already been out to the crime scene earlier, dealing with a dog guarding the remains and the anthropologist wanting a pig as a child. Now they were stood in the lab, everyone standing around the remains of what Brennan had determined was a female in her late teens, with blonde hair, buried between seven and ten years earlier. "What is it?"

"Can I move these post-it notes now?" He gestured down to his holster, which was still covered in the sticky-backed squares, though they were a little crumpled. He'd been getting strange looks and teasing all morning at the Hoover building for it, especially when he hadn't even made a move to remove them. Brennan shook her head, biting her lip to stifle a smile that threatened to break out at his sulking features. When he pulled that face, he reminded her of Parker when he didn't get his own way.

"No, you can't. You know that." She replied, glancing back down to the remains on the steel table. Sighing, Booth turned his attention to Angela's rendition of the victim's face.

"Is this our victim?" He asked, gaining a nod in confirmation from everyone around him. He ignored Cam's inquisitive gaze as the various scientists deduced that the victim had been hit with a tire iron.

"Tire iron." Brennan repeated slowly as realisation dawned. "Hands and feet bound." She addressed her comments to the room, but it was mainly directed at Booth, whose furrowed brow showed that he was trying to keep up with his girlfriend's much quicker train of thought. "Buried face down."

"Epps." He nodded solemnly. Everyone's faces dropped apart from Cam's, who stared at everyone else in confusion, wondering just what had altered the atmosphere of her colleagues so drastically with one single uttered word, one she didn't even understand at that.

"Hello? New team member in the room guys." Cam reminded them.

"Howard Epps: serial killer on death row." Brennan delivered to her concisely.

"He killed at least three." Booth added.

"We found two of them last year." Hodgins piped up.

"The judge stayed his execution to try him on the new charges." Angela finished.

"You saved his life. Ironic." Cam returned caustically, glancing at everyone in turn again.

"The timeline fits. She would have been killed about six months before Epps was sent to prison." Brennan refocused on the girl in front of them.

"Run it through the database; get an ID, Angela, please." Booth requested of the artist, who nodded, immediately understanding Booth's reluctance to go and see the serial killer himself.

"Why don't you just ask him?" Cam asked.

"Well, that would be because the last time Bones saw Epps, it… got violent." He replied, his eyes on Brennan rather than Cam, his entire face showing his pride in his partner, with a little lust in there. He'd be the first to admit that watching his partner slam Epps' arm into the table had been more than a little hot, something that he was sure Brennan had already figured out, if her returning gaze was anything to go by.

"You'll be there to protect her." Cam misunderstood his words and attempted to reassure him. Booth laughed a little at her words.

"She's not the one who needs protecting. Bones broke his wrist."

"He touched me with his creepy serial killer hands." Brennan defended herself with a shudder at the memory.

"Better not take Dr Brennan."

…

"Hey Bones?" Booth slipped into Brennan's office just moments after the anthropologist. "Are you going to be okay with this case?"

"I am very good at compartmentalising, Booth." She set a file down on her desk and turned to face him. "Are you?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Booth waved it off. "Oh." He remembered the other reason he'd followed her rather than spoken on the platform with her. "I just remembered. Becks called earlier. Parker won't be with us this weekend."

"Why not?"

"Her mom, who lives in Virginia, is sick, like dying, and Rebecca wants to take Parker up to say goodbye. This is the only weekend she's free, and she doesn't know how long her mom's got." Booth explained, standing barely a foot away from her.

Brennan nodded. "Alright. Have we got Parker next weekend instead?"

"Yeah." Booth nodded. "You know, it's funny, but since Becca got Gem to start minding Parker, and then you and I became more… personal, she's been much better about actually giving me time with Parker. I'd hate to think what it would be like if I didn't have you and Ammi in my life."

"Hmm…" She stepped a little closer, a small smile creeping on her lips. "Well, I suppose you wouldn't have post-it notes on your gun, for one."

"No, I wouldn't."

"And you wouldn't be embarrassed as much, like when my daughter hits the bedroom door with a bouncy ball because we're being too loud." She teased, smirking when he flushed a deep red. Usually, they were quite that loud, but on a couple of occasions, Amethyst had had to find ways to get them to be quiet, and so had taken to throwing a blue sparkly bouncy ball that Russ had bought her at the bedroom door whenever they'd gotten too loud for her to effectively ignore.

"True."

"And you wouldn't have the family we are." She finished simply. Booth had reiterated many times that there was more than one type of family, and that he, Brennan, Amethyst and Parker constituted one kind of family, despite no blood relation between the children. Booth's features softened as he gave in to the urge to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Well, I definitely wouldn't want that."

"That's good."

"Do you want to grab some lunch at the diner before I see Epps?"

"I'd like to, but I need to stay here and re-examine the remains to see what more I can discover."

"Alright. Are we at your place tonight?"

"Yes, I want to check on Ammi."

"How about we grab some Thai on the way home then, sound like a plan?"

"I'd like that Booth."

"Good. I'll see you later then. Oh and Bones?"

"Yes Booth?"

"Eat something for lunch, or I'm telling your daughter on you."

"You wouldn't."

"Try me."

 **To Be Continued…**


	7. Chapter 7

**(A/N): I'm sorry it's been so long guys. In all honesty, exam season is upon me, and whilst this is borne of procrastination, it also holds some truth within this author's note. Until my exams are over and done with, I probably won't be getting any more chapters out, for anything. If I do indeed manage it, then my next chapter will be that of Heaven Can Wait, but that is only a slight possibility. Also, I was a little sad with the lack of reviews for this fic. I mean, if you don't want me to post any more of this, you guys only have to say, but I like reviews, they make me feel all warm and fuzzy, not to mention that they tell me if I'm doing good or not. That being said, onto review time:**

 **Loverofbones:** Aww thank you, I'm glad that one made you laugh. I hope you enjoy this chapter too, though it is not as fun, I think. Still, thank you for reviewing.

 **Allthingstvshows (1,2 and 3):** I'm happy that the bouncy ball made you laugh. It seemed like an Ammi thing to do. I'm okay, I promise, just swamped with revision and work and whatnot. I love your reviews and I hope you like this chapter just as much as the rest of them.

 **ZinaR:** You may be assuming correctly. I foresee Judas on a Pole featuring in this fic haha. Thanks for reviewing!

 **Okay, so, I think I've said this before, but if you want to ask me anything on my fics or anything, I can be PMed here and I'm not opposed to social media if you want to request that off me. So, with that done, this chapter starts up the Gravedigger arc, as well as Ammi and Cam's first meeting. I mean, you didn't think it'd go smoothly, did you? Enjoy.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 7**

It had been a couple of weeks since the Epps case, which had included a short undercover case in Las Vegas, a chance for the partners to openly display themselves as a couple, whilst Amethyst had volunteered to stay with Angela, calmly deflecting and defusing some of the artist's more outlandish ideas of her friends' relationship. In short, things had been going smoothly recently, far too smoothly.

"Okay, why did you want to meet me here?" Booth asked a little snippily as he slipped into a seat opposite Cam in the Royal Diner, deliberately ignoring the slinky black dress the coroner wore and the elegant updo her hair had been fashioned into. He'd ignored a lot of none too subtle hints from her that she was interested in him as more than a friend, but he'd also stolen a specialty of his girlfriend's, and played innocent to her intentions. He checked his cell phone out of habit, as he always did when he didn't go home at night with Brennan, like when she was working late, or, like that night, going to karate. Amethyst was waiting for them both at Brennan's apartment with Parker. It was a Thursday, but Rebecca had agreed to give Booth from Thursday to Tuesday with the little boy in a rare display of generosity.

Cam sat up a little straighter and tucked a small stray lock of hair behind her ear. "Look, Seeley, I really wanted to tell you…"

"Don't call me Seeley, Camille." Booth cut her off, automatically reaching for his phone as it began to ring. Cam's hand shot out, covering his hand that held his phone.

"Let it go to voicemail. You're not on call tonight and you deserve a night off." Cam let go of his hand after it had stopped ringing. "Seeley, I want us to be… more than simply old friends."

"Cam…"

"No. I know the chemistry is there, and don't even try to deny it. I want us to try, at least, as a couple."

Booth's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish as he tried to figure out a way to let her down gently, preferably without settling Cam's wrath on his girlfriend through no fault of her own. He settled on checking his voicemail to give himself more time, his face losing all its colour as he listened to the modulated voice telling him that both his partner and Hodgins had been captured and buried alive by the Gravedigger.

"What is it?" Cam asked, half curious and half irritated at the interruption to their conversation. Mutely, Booth pressed replay and held out the phone for her to hear the message.

…

"Oh studly." Angela wrapped her arms around him as soon as he entered the lab, Cam hot on his heels. "How much did they want?"

"Eight million dollars." Booth rubbed his forehead with his hand, attempting to rub away the tension headache he could feel forming between his eyes. "I know Hodgins is rich, and Bones' books are doing well, but, I just… I don't know if I can get that much money in time."

"We'll get them back Booth." Angela assured him, directing a harsh gaze to Cam as the latter attempted to place her hand on Booths bicep. Booth shook the hand off instantly, shaking his head at the same time.

"I know but, ugh, I gotta call Gem, and I've got Parker, and…" He trailed off as Angela shot a sympathetic glance in his direction.

"Don't worry about all that g-man. Leave that to me. You just focus on getting Jack and Bren back, okay?"

"Thanks Ange." Booth managed a shaky smile before he made his way into his partner's office and pulled out all the information she had on the gravedigger. He had to find something, he just had to.

Angela waited until Cam had stormed off to her office in a huff before she flipped her phone open and called up her best friend's daughter. "Ammi, its Ange. Listen, there's something you need to know…"

…

Booth had just gathered up Angela, Cam and Zack to discuss anything they may have found when the doors to the lab opened with their usual whooshing noise and Amethyst strode in with a hurried stride, wearing a casual blouse and jeans combo with combat boots, carrying Parker on her hip, who was wearing soccer pyjamas and was sleeping on Amethyst's shoulder, little slippers adorning his feet. She made her way into Brennan's office, the open blinds allowing everyone to witness her putting Parker down to rest on the sofa and covering him with the usual throw that rested on the couch usually. Once she'd done that she strode back out and bounced up the platform steps after swiping herself through. "Okay, what've we got so far guys?" She asked simply, gazing round at everyone.

"I'm so sorry." Booth managed to choke out, his eyes watering at the knowledge that the teenager stood so calmly before him could lose her mother in the next few hours, and he couldn't help but blame himself for it. He nearly flinched as her eyes, as identical to her mother's as always, fixed on him with a steady gaze. She shrugged a little.

"It's not your fault. So don't beat yourself up over it Booth." She offered him a small smile. "Let's just find them, okay?" She turned to Zack as Angela handed her Brennan's spare lab coat, buttoning it up over her blouse and tying up her hair into a messy bun. "Zack, you start."

"I, uh, alright." Zack cleared his throat. "A significant force was used to deliver an electric shock to the back of the neck, similar to that of a stun gun or a cattle prod, but I cannot find one that is strong enough to leave damage to the bone that we've found so far."

"Ammi, the ransom was eight million dollars." Angela told her softly, making the younger one flinch a little.

"I know." Amethyst replied just as softly.

"She doesn't have that much, does she?" Booth asked, fairly certain of the answer. Amethyst shook her head.

"No. If I had to guess, I'd say about two or three. But not eight. Definitely not eight. I can make a few calls, but…" She let out a deep breath. "There's no guarantee I'd get the money, let alone in time."

"Damnit!" Booth hit the railing of the platform in frustration. "I can't get anything from the Cantilever group either without proof of life."

"Not even for Hodgins?" Angela asked.

"It's his rule." Booth told her with a defeated sigh. "And everyone knows that the Gravedigger doesn't give proof of life, and he doesn't negotiate. _Damnit!_ " He repeated, hitting the railing again. It hurt his hand to do it, but it soothed a little of his incredibly troubled mind to focus on the pain in his hand rather than the pain in his heart at the thought of not getting the two scientists back, though his heart mainly cried out for his partner and what she might be going through.

"I'm sorry but what's going on?" Cam finally interrupted, having eventually found her voice. All heads turned to face her in unison. "Who're you?" She demanded of Amethyst.

"Ammi."

Amethyst, Angela and Booth replied simultaneously. Cam shook her head.

"Alright, _Ammi_. What do you think you are doing here, especially in a supposedly restricted area of the medico-legal lab?"

"I'm helping you all get Drs Brennan and Hodgins back from the Gravedigger." Amethyst replied slowly.

"And who authorised that?"

"I did." Booth answered testily before pulling out his phone and dialling his boss' number quickly.

" _Cullen."_

"Sir, do I have authorisation for Amethyst to be part of the Gravedigger investigation?"

"… _Yes, go on. That kid's as scarily smart as her mother. If anyone can get the scientist back, then it'll be that kid of Dr Brennan's. Tell her I said hi, and that Amy would like her to visit when she gets the time."_

"Thank you sir, and I will do." Booth hung up before addressing Cam once more. "Cullen agreed." He then turned to Amethyst. "He said hi, and to visit Amy when you have the time. She misses company around her own age, I think."

"Well, I don't blame her. Adults suck." She stuck her tongue out at Booth's mock offended expression. Her jovial expression dropped from her face. Adopting a serious mien, she stepped up to the special agent and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his shoulder. Booth's arms automatically circled around her back, hugging her as tightly as possible without hurting her. "We'll get them back." She murmured, her voice muffled slightly by his suit jacket. Booth found himself nodding into her hair, though he wasn't certain who he was reassuring; the teenager or himself.

"Yeah, maybe." He forced himself to pull back slightly, enough to meet her worried sapphire eyes. "I just… I want my partner back. And Hodgins, obviously, but…"

"I know what you mean." She assured him. "And you don't think they'd go down without a fight, do you? I'd take the twelve hours as a guideline, not a deadline."

"Huh?"

"Their IQs are genius levels by themselves. Put that together and their knowledge of pretty much everything, and you don't think they'll be able to find a way to prolong their oxygen supply?"

"You have a point." Booth admitted slowly before a though occurred to him. "Wait, how do you know about the Gravedigger? We only got the case today."

"Angela told me who took them when she called. I googled the name when I was getting Parker up enough to move himself to the elevator. Eidetic memory, remember?"

"And yet you still need to put sticky notes on every available surface." He muttered, returning the smirk she shot him with one of his own. "Alright, well, I need to have another talk with a H and R guy. You gonna be okay here?"

"Yeah. I'll make a few calls, see how much money I can gather in the timeframe we have, and I'll keep Parker company. I'll look over the remains with Zack too if I get the chance."

"Okay. Twenty minute check-ins?" Booth checked as he finally released her. Amethyst rolled her eyes but nodded.

"Normally, I'd call you over-protective, but under the circumstances, I can live with it."

"That's the point gem. I'll bring food for you and Parks in a couple of hours."

…

Angela held back her smirk as Cam practically foamed at the mouth beside her, both females in the former's office watching as Amethyst moved around the platform with a practised ease, directing Zack on what to do to assist her. Parker sat in a chair in a corner of the platform colouring in a picture book Amethyst had brought in from the car.

"Who is she and why is she acting like she runs the place?" Cam fumed, mainly to herself.

"Huh? Oh, that's Ammi. It's just the way she is."

"And clinging to Seeley? Is that 'just the way she is' as well?" Cam asked, mocking the words that Angela used to try and describe the unique teen.

Angela bit her bottom lip to try and stop herself from snapping at the pathologist. She could see herself liking the other woman if it weren't for two things; one, that she was trying to snag Booth as a romantic partner, and two, that she seemed intent on making Brennan miserable. The second item had gotten a bit better, but the first had gotten worse. Angela didn't know which balance she hated more. "If anyone's going to find Jack and Bren, then it'd be Ammi. I've never bet against her yet, and I'm not about to start now."

Cam huffed and stalked from the room. Angela rolled her eyes but followed her boss out into the main lab area and up onto the platform. Cam ignored the brunette girl with the blue streak and Zack, instead walking up to Parker and pasting on a smile for the five year old. "Hey Parker. Do you remember me?" She bit back a sigh at Parker's hesitant shake of the head. "I'm Cam. I'm a friend of your daddy's." Parker's eyes shot instantly to Amethyst, who had stepped from the bodies and removed her gloves. She stepped up to them, placing a hand on Parker's shoulder.

"Can I help you?" She asked, barely keeping her tone civil. It was one thing to make her mother make amends with the pathologist, but she drew the line at letting the woman use Parker so obviously in trying to get to Booth. She'd promised both of his parents that she'd look after and protect the young boy after all.

"I'm trying to talk to Parker."

"Not without me here you're not. And failing that, you can't without Angela present." She glanced at the artist, who nodded her consent to that. "Parker doesn't know who you are, and he's been taught not to talk to strangers."

"And just who do you think you are?" Cam demanded, drawing herself up to her full height in an attempt at intimidation. She didn't see Booth enter the lab near the platform with cartons of take-out for his family. Amethyst's eyes flashed an icy blue as she stepped fully in front of Parker, standing up just as straight as the older woman, arms crossed across her chest and one hip jutted out slightly.

"I am Amethyst Tesla Brennan and you will cease talking to Parker and I in such a derogatory and condescending fashion immediately." She told the coroner with all the air and authority that Brennan usually possessed. Angela looked torn between gasping in surprise and laughing at Cam's shocked profile. Booth's jaw dropped. He'd never heard the fourteen year old sound like that before, no matter what situation she'd been in. Silently dismissing Cam, she handed a notebook to Angela. "Jack writes you a lot of notes right? Can you figure out what this says? I found it open to this page in his office next to his mass spectrometer."

Angela took the notebook with a sombre nod, reading the scrawling writing quickly. "Uhm, it says that the traces of aluminium found on the clothing are almost certainly from the kidnapper's vehicle, like a box in the back of a trunk or van."

"You can read that?" Cam asked in surprise.

Angela shrugged. "Like Ammi says; Hodgins sends me a lot of notes."

Booth decided that that moment was the best to announce his presence, bouncing up the steps and holding out the take-out boxes. "Okay, who wants pizza?"

 **To Be Continued…**


	8. Chapter 8

**(A/N): Hey guys! *ducks to avoid flying objects* I missed you all! I am so so sorry about the very late update to this story. Life has been less than kind lately, throwing much my way. Still, I endeavoured to get this finished as soon as I had a couple of free days available to myself. Who knew that that would be so long after my last update? Not me, that's for certain. Anyway, I don't have a review time on this one! I know right? I've decided to give replying on PMs a shot and see how it goes, mainly so you guys don't have to scroll down forever to get to the bit you want to read, the chapter itself! With that in mind, I would like to thank everyone that reviewed but I can't reply to in PMs, I love you guys! I own nada, nothing, to do with Bones, and Ammi is a figment of my imagination, though I borrowed from Aliens in a Spaceship for a lot of this chapter. All mistakes are mine and I hope you enjoy.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 8**

" _You know, God is a lot like the gravedigger."_

" _What?" Booth's head shot round as his partner's words finally permeated his consciousness. "What?"_

" _He really just lays down the rules for people, and there's no way of questioning it or negotiating due to circumstances, then it's almost like he doesn't really care if or how it works out." Brennan explained her thoughts patiently, though Booth's expression remained stuck at incredulous as he watched her. "You either do what he says and they're delivered, or you ignore it and you go to hell."_

 _Booth crossed himself whilst keeping his eyes on the road, not wanting to get into an accident because his girlfriend was decimating his belief system, probably unintentionally as well. "You know what, I really don't wanna get hit by lightning, so could you just not say things like that?"_

" _Well, do you go to church_ every _Sunday?" Brennan asked curiously, emphasising the 'every' part. They weren't together every night, and so she didn't know what he did on Sunday mornings, not really._

" _Yes."_

" _Can I come with you?"_

" _No, you can't." Booth denied her firmly, ignoring the pouting look she shot him._

" _Why not? It might help me to understand it better if I see it from your perspective."_

" _Because there is no way that I'm going to help you disrespect God in his own house, Bones. If you want to do an anthropological study, turn on the religious channel."_

" _I bet you'd take Ammi if she asked." Brennan returned, still pouting. Booth shook his head._

" _No, I wouldn't. She has the same, uh, opinions as you on the man upstairs, so yeah, that's a no go either."_

" _Do you take Parker?"_

" _On the weekends I have him, yeah. Rebecca takes him the other weekends."_

" _I still don't see why I can't go."_

" _You just can't Bones."_

Booth sighed almost silently to himself as he recalled the conversation between himself and his partner. He'd been so adamant in the car that she couldn't go with him to church, but he was silently promising himself that if he got her back before that stupid deadline, he would take her with him any time she asked, and put up with more of her opinions on his religion, though he didn't think he could take another conversation where she called Jesus a zombie. Blinking, he glanced around Brennan's office, where Amethyst and Parker were eating a slice of pizza each in silence. Parker looked up to catch the teenager's eye every ten seconds or so, constantly checking something with her, though as no words were exchanged, Booth didn't know exactly what, whilst Amethyst seemed to be avoiding looking at almost everything, taking much smaller bites of her food than Booth had ever seen her do. Her body language as a whole made Booth come to the conclusion that she felt ashamed of something, with a bit of guilt thrown in there. Unable to take the oppressive silence any longer, Booth cleared his throat inadvertently making the two minors jump in surprise at the noise.

"Okay, what's going on with you two?" He asked, watching them carefully. Amethyst and Parker shared a look before they both shrugged and looked back at their food. Booth's eyes narrowed at them. "Don't give me that shrug, and gem, stop teaching my son stuff like that." He told her with mock firmness in his voice, though Parker didn't hear the levity in his tone and looked up to frown at his father.

"Don't do that daddy! Ammi's sad 'cause she had to shout to protect me." Parker defended her with his little arms crossed over his chest, causing Booth's heart to clench a little. He knew his son had gotten that particular move from Brennan and it made him feel the loss all the more keenly.

"Amethyst." Amethyst looked up at hearing the FBI agent use her full first name, noting in surprise the rarity of it being used by anyone, but especially him. "Why are you upset about that?" Booth asked gently.

"I... I just kinda feel like a let my mom down back there." She confessed, staring down at the half eaten pizza slice in her hands. "I don't really use that voice a lot."

"It definitely surprised me. I've never heard you sound like that."

"Dad says it's my own version of mom's 'you're inferior in every way' voice." A faint smile crossed her features. "Mom yelled at him for an hour when he told her what he'd dubbed it." Booth smiled with her, knowing fairly well his partner's reaction to things like that.

"Gem, listen. You didn't let your mom down, and I think she'll be pretty darn proud of you. You stood up for Parker and put Cam in her place, and I'll tell you something as well; I'm pretty darn proud of you too." Booth opened his arms and Amethyst returned the hug hesitantly, resting her head on his shoulder. Not to be left out, Parker dived onto them, half on Booth's lap, half on Amethyst's, pulling them into a group hug that made all of them feel a little better.

…

"Did… Did she just say Amethyst _Brennan_?" Cam spluttered out after the trio had left the platform for Brennan's office. Angela and Zack shared a blank look as Cam's mouth moved but no more words came out. Angela fought the urge to grab her camera and take a picture of the momentous occasion, it being the first time they'd managed to make Cam speechless.

"Yeah, she did." Angela confirmed slowly. It hadn't been anywhere near the reveal she'd been planning for months, but there was no way the secret could've been kept, not with the events of the last few hours. Still, the pathologist's reaction was well worth her shredded plans.

"Brennan?" Cam repeated once she'd regained use of sound. "Like _Temperance Brennan_?"

"Yes." Zack shook his head, slightly concerned by their boss' apparent inability to grasp the basic concept of the teenager being related to the anthropologist.

"So, she's Dr Brennan sister, or her niece right?" Cam asked, a tinge of hope colouring her tone.

"No, Amethyst is Dr Brennan's daughter." Zack corrected blandly, still working on what Amethyst had been helping him with before Cam had tried to talk to Parker.

"Dr Brennan has a daughter? Why did no-one tell me?" All the colour had left Cam's face.

"You never asked." Angela pointed out.

"And Hodgins is always positing that Dr Brennan had a child so that the next generation would have someone to make them feel stupid." Zack added, not bothering to look up. Angela managed a smile at the well-worn complaint Hodgins made whenever Brennan or Amethyst said something that was seemingly obvious to them, but would take three highly intelligent people a month to figure out.

"So, she's here…"

"To help us and Booth find her mom and Hodgins." Angela finished for her. "If anyone can find them, it'd be Booth and Ammi."

…

Hodgins folded the note and slipped it into his pocket, making sure it was secure. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Is that a note to Angela?" Brennan murmured as she glanced up from his leg. Contrary to popular belief, she wasn't completely oblivious to just how bad the entomologist had it for her best friend. She'd been proven right when Amethyst had commented on the depths of his feelings as well.

"Yes. Just in case. If whatever you're gonna do to me sends me into shock, I could die." He panted out, eyes locked on Brennan's concerned ones. "The upside? My not breathing doubles your time of survival."

"I'm not interested in surviving that way." She told him calmly. She informed him of what she was going to do to his leg, knowing that if their roles were reversed, she'd want to know, answering his questions as honestly as she could. "Don't fight passing out. Ready?"

Hodgins nodded, tightening his hold on the sides of the car.

"Wait." She pulled out a small piece of a sticker, placing it in her book for safekeeping per Hodgins' instruction before returning to the task at hand.

"I'm nuts about Angela." He burst out before she could make an incision. "Over the moon. Stupid in love with her. That's why I bought her that crazy expensive perfume. A man gives a woman something like that, it says… says that he loves her." Brennan nodded. "There. I've said it aloud." He replaced the material between his teeth to bite down on and nodded his readiness again, screaming around the material as she cut into his leg before passing out as the pain became too much for him to handle.

…

Brennan hit the horn accidentally, surprising her and drawing a startled gasp from Hodgins. She span round in her seat, letting out a sigh of relief as she saw his eyes flutter open to stare at her. "Thank the figurative god I didn't kill you."

"How long have I been out? Unconscious." Hodgins clarified at her slightly puzzled look.

"A while. How is your leg feeling?"

"Better. A lot Better." He shifted it experimentally. "What are you doing?"

"Hotwiring the cell phone to the horn so we can potentially send a message."

"From underground?" He asked, a slight snark registering in his tone that Brennan chose to ignore.

"We get the radio, and the battery still works."

Hodgins explained how quickly the battery would fry the circuits on a cell phone, and they discussed whether or not a short text message would work. "Who do we send it to?" He asked.

"Booth could trace it to a relay tower." Brennan suggested, to which Hodgins nodded.

"Okay, so what do we send? 'Goodbye'? 'It was nice knowing you'?"

"Look around. What are we surrounded by?"

"Pain. Despair. A subsoil accumulation of agglutinate aridosols."

"So, dirt."

"I don't like that term."

"Alright." She reached down and grabbed a handful of 'dirt', holding it out to him. "Tell me something I don't know about it then."

…

 _6 7 16 M 1. 4_

Booth waved a hand at the message on the board, his eyes frantically wandering over every occupant on the platform as they stood about, racking their brains to try and think of its meaning.

"They're getting low on oxygen." Cam offered in a low voice, not wanting to be the one to raise the point, but she felt as though she had to. Amethyst shook her head.

"No, I don't believe that. Those numbers have to mean something." She sighed, taking a step forward. "I think it was sent to you Booth, because then you could try to trace it back. As for the message itself, I don't think my mom sent it."

"It's from your mom's number." Booth argued. "Look, I tried all the dumb-guy normal stuff, that's why I'm here talking to you lot. Think! Work it!" He hit the screen in frustration, though he kept his voice down so as not to disturb Parker, who was happily oblivious in Brennan's office.

"They're not cops." Cam rebutted.

They all watched as the timer ran out, a defeated air running over everyone except Amethyst, who stood there, determination on her face making her look a lot more like her mother than usual. "I told you all; take the timer as an estimate. They'll have found a way to extend their oxygen. I mean, they sent us a text from underground, didn't they?"

"So what does it mean?" Booth asked, not sure if he was just humouring her or if he truly believed that they still had time. Though as he stood there, he found that he was genuinely hopeful about getting to them in time. Amethyst had never been wrong about her mother yet, and he wasn't about to start betting against her now.

He listened to Zack and Angela discussing what it wasn't, until Cam interrupted. "See, this is why I was sent here. You're brilliant, but you won't make intuitive leaps."

"Jump to conclusions?" Amethyst asked for clarification.

"Exactly. This is a message from one of them to one of us. Who was it meant for?"

"I already answered that." Amethyst replied with a raised eyebrow. Cam shook her head.

"No, I mean the message itself, not the phone it was sent to."

"Hodgins…" Angela's countenance brightened as she thought about it. "The message is from Hodgins. They're buried alive as he'd all about dirt."

"He's all about dirt and Angela." Zack and Amethyst pointed out in unison. Any other time, Booth would have laughed at Angela's expression of everyone knowing that, but he had bigger things to worry about.

"Yeah, but these are numbers, which means either Zack or Ammi." Booth gestured again to the board.

"Not me. I take Maths, but I have no idea what these mean." Amethyst held her hands up in surrender as Zack got a blank look and he began to say his thoughts aloud about elements. "Narrow it down Zack," she advised as they crowded round the computer screen he was occupying until he finally looked up.

"I know where they are."

…

Cam looked up from her spot in the hospital waiting room where she, Booth, Amethyst, Parker, Angela, Zack, and surprisingly enough, Rebecca, were all sat, awaiting news. Cam was especially surprised by Rebecca's presence in the room, convinced in her mind that she'd probably dislike Brennan for being close to Booth, as well as seemingly close to Parker, if the little boy's reaction through the entire ordeal had been any indication. To her surprise, Rebecca seemed genuinely concerned as she sat between Booth and Parker, with Amethyst on the other side of Parker.

"She'll be fine, Seeley." Rebecca told Booth calmly, her left hand clutching Booth's right, or rather, his hand clutching hers. "Tempe won't be anything less than fine. She won't allow it." Her words brought a slight smile to Booth's face.

"Yeah daddy, mommy doesn't lie. Tempe's going to be okay." Parker piped up, holding his mother's free hand.

"You're right bub." Booth glanced at Amethyst, who was staring at the corridor leading down to where both Brennan and Hodgins were getting treated blankly. Rebecca followed his gaze before catching Booth's attention with pressure on their linked hands, silently shaking her head, warning him not to bother the teenager. Amethyst didn't react like most people when someone they loved was hurt and in hospital, but Booth was still worried about how she was taking it.

Cam watched the interactions with thinly veiled curiosity. She was confused by the dynamics she was witnessing. The last time she'd spoken to Booth properly, before she'd taken the Jeffersonian job, he'd been complaining at Rebecca's manipulation of the time he could spend with his son, and also that she kept dangling on a string, not wanting to be with him, but dead against any other woman that spent time with him. So, for her to witness something that went totally against what she'd formed from her sporadic phone calls with Booth was a source of both curiosity and confusion for the pathologist. She saw the frantic way Booth had clawed at the earth to free Brennan, and the way he'd clung to her until she'd ordered him in a scratchy voice to help Hodgins, returning to her side the moment Hodgins was free and only leaving her side once she'd been sequestered away into the ambulance. Then he'd sped to the Jeffersonian, where Amethyst had stayed behind with Parker, picking the pair up to go straight to the hospital and wait on any news about the two under the hospital's care.

She still couldn't wrap her head around the dark haired teenager being her forensic anthropologist's daughter, something inside her rebelling at it, thinking that it couldn't possibly be real. However, she didn't really feel like thinking about it, figuring she'd get used to it in time. Really, what other surprises could there possibly be for her?

The group looked up collectively as Brennan stepped into the waiting room with a prescription in hand. In an instant, Booth, Parker and Amethyst had jumped up and rushed up to the woman. Booth held back, allowing Amethyst and Parker to throw their arms around Brennan, who hugged them back with a wide smile on her face. She felt a whole new wave of love wash over her for them, which she knew was a result of thinking she'd never see them again, especially her daughter. "I love you," she whispered, squeezing them to her for a moment before loosening her hold. Amethyst swallowed against the lump in her throat and offered her mother a shaky smile, finding herself shaking once she'd seen Brennan was safe with her own eyes. She took hold of Parker's hand and moved away, smiling and gesturing with her head to Booth that the floor was all his.

Booth nodded his thanks to Amethyst and strode up to Brennan, wrapping his arms around her waist as hers came up to wrap round the back of his neck. "I thought I'd lost you," he murmured before crashing his lips onto his girlfriend's, pulling her as close as humanly possible. They lost themselves in their kiss, both never wanting to let go. Amethyst smiled as Parker giggled behind his hand. Rebecca shook her head playfully, moving to join the two children. Zack simply looked a little bored even as Angela squealed at their public display of affection. Cam thought she was going to faint at the sight of the man she wanted trying to stick his tongue down his partner's throat. Eventually, the need for air pulled them apart and even as she caught her breath, Brennan turned in Booth's embrace to face her best friend.

"Oh sweetie…"

"Ange." Brennan smiled softly at her, almost knowingly. "Hodgins left the hospital without being discharged. He stole crutches to facilitate his escape." Her smile grew a little when she saw Angela become physically concerned and impatient to leave. She knew it had to be obvious if even she'd picked up on it. "I'd try the Jeffersonian first if I were to attempt looking for him."

"…Thanks Brennan. Uh, do you mind if I…?" She trailed off at all the knowing looks.

"Go. He needs you." Brennan insisted. "But don't tell him I told you that."

"I won't. Love your guts sweetie."

"I love you too Angela."

…

Booth blinked rapidly in an attempt to keep his eyes open. He was sat on the couch at his apartment, trying to watch a late night movie that was doing nothing to hold his interest, his arms wrapped around his girlfriend, who was snuggled up against his shoulder, her face resting in the crook of his neck. She'd been wary to fall asleep at all, with only Booth's promise of not letting her go even once whilst she slept allowing her to even contemplate the idea. Her fear was of the darkness she felt when she closed her eyes, like she was still buried underground. Booth's fear was that if he closed his eyes, even for a moment, saving her would prove to be a dream and he'd wake up with the knowledge that she was gone forever. Amethyst was at home, whilst Parker was back with his mother. Booth felt guilty for being the one with Brennan when her daughter needed her just as much as he did, if not more, but the teenager had shaken it off, informing him that he was the one the anthropologist would need more, and that they could help each other better if she wasn't in the way of that.

He felt her shift slightly in his arms, a whimper escaping her throat as a nightmare took hold. Tightening his arms around her protectively, he murmured sweet nothings in her ear and shifted in his seat so that her ear was pressed to his chest, where she could hear his heartbeat. Somehow, the combination of the three calmed her without waking her, and she settled down once more. Booth pressed his lips to her hair, which had been washed and so was no longer covered in the earth she'd been buried in. He couldn't imagine what it was like for her and Hodgins down there, though he'd shuddered when the techs had sent him a picture of the unearthed car they'd been buried in. All he had was his imagination, and the slight indications Brennan had given him, though she hadn't said much about it. Booth wanted nothing more than to keep her safe and happy forever, no matter what he had to do to achieve either. He'd do it all, in a heartbeat. He adjusted his hold on her as his own eyes finally rebelled against his mind and slipped closed.

"Sleep well, Bones," he murmured before he joined her in slumber. "I've got you."

 **To Be Continued…**


	9. Chapter 9

**(A/N): I know, I know, I'm a terrible human being, keeping everyone waiting this long. I have been super super busy and actually I still am, but I've put off my next piece of coursework for a day to write this for you all. Plus I got a new laptop, which makes writing all of this stuff easier, though I still have no time right now. Anyway, you don't need to hear about all this, and normally I'd do review time, but I think you guys deserve to just go on and read the longer than normal chapter I've produced for you all. I love each and every one of you that has reviewed, followed and favourited, and I hope you a) like this chapter, b) will be patient with me in regards to everything eles, and c) have a wonderful 2018. I still don't own Bones, or it wouldn't have finished. On a side note, I MET TJ THYNE in December. I've never met a sweeter guy. Still, on with the chapter.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter Nine**

"What's up dad?" Russ asked as he slipped into the remote diner's most secluded booth, opposite an older man with sandy hair and piercing eyes, dressed casually. All in all, someone ultimately forgettable. Russ himself wouldn't have recognised him had his father not proved who he was to his son at a previous meeting between the two. He'd been meeting up with his dad fairly regularly the last few weeks, well, as regularly as two convicted criminals could meet up without drawing suspicion to themselves. But for Max to call him out of the blue with an unscheduled meeting worried Russ, for he felt deep down that something was wrong, that the phone call was the confirmation that something was going on.

"You need to get to your sister and warn her. You're both in danger." Max leant forwards, worry creasing his brow as he watched his son intently. "You're being watched, Russ, can't you feel it on the back of your neck?"

Russ half nodded, half shrugged. "Well, kinda, but I figured that was you, dad."

"Not just me, son. And until I can take care of it, you need to go to your sister. It's easier for me to protect you both if you're in the same place."

"I can't just leave my job, or Amy and the kids." Russ' face hardened. "I already left someone I love once; it's not happening again."

Max's face twisted a little with guilt and worry. He'd never meant to leave them like he had, but he couldn't go back in time and change things. "Then tell her, and only her, where you're going. I'm sure your wife knows who Temperance is."

"Of course she does." Russ sighed. "I don't keep secrets from Amy."

"Does she know about me?"

"Yes, but she doesn't know where I meet you or what you look like." Russ sighed again. "Dad, Tempe won't be happy if you start taking people out. She works with the FBI, you know."

"That just means I have to be more careful." Max hesitated, before asking, "Is she happy? Does she have a home, a job, a family?"

"I-uh-" Russ floundered with what to say. He was beyond proud of his sister, especially after the few days he'd spent with her and her family earlier in the year. He'd spent that time getting to know her once again and was amazed with her. He'd also gotten to know Amethyst, and to a lesser extent Booth and Parker. However, he didn't know if his father knew about his granddaughter, and he wasn't about to go spilling things his sister hadn't told him he could. He wanted so badly to be the brother to her he was before he'd left, and that included keeping things from their dad for her. If she wanted to tell him, or show him, eventually, then she could. He wouldn't spoil it for her. "Yeah, she's happy. You should see her, dad. Tell her you're okay."

"No." Max stood abruptly. "I have to go, but do as I've said, Russell, and go to DC."

…

Booth laughed as he threw a handful of flour at his girlfriend, the white powdery substance falling just short of completely coating her in it. Brennan's eyes narrowed as her hand dipped into the bowl he'd just grabbed flour from, grabbing a fistful. Booth's eyes widened as she removed her hand, though rather than throw it at him, she grabbed the front of his shirt and dragged her hand down, coating his black button-down shirt in flour.

"Bones!" He caught hold of the offending hand at the wrist and pushed it back towards her, getting a flour-y handprint on her own shirt. "I thought we were making cookies."

"You started it." She replied matter-of-factly, a smirk playing at the corners of her mouth. Booth pulled her to him by the waist, lowering his head to press a kiss to her lips. However, just as their lips touched, their phone went off in tandem, making them break away with a mutual groan at being interrupted.

They both went for their respective cell phones, Booth listening to Cullen whilst Brennan listened to Cam, the latter of which was still very awkward around the partners. Since the night of the hospital family scene, including Rebecca, Cam had avoided them as much as she possibly could, only speaking to them when she had no other choice, and pretty much always about a case. The one time Booth had managed to get something else out of her was when she questioned him on their dynamics with Parker and his mother.

" _Where does Rebecca fit into your personal… relationships?"_

" _What do you mean? She's the mother of my son, Cam." Booth frowned in confusion._

" _Last time I spoke with you before I came here, she was withholding Parker from you and hated any woman you spent more than five minutes with." Cam pointed out. She'd never particularly liked Rebecca and the feeling was entirely mutual._

 _Booth shrugged, though he was smiling. "Ah, well Becks, she and Bones already knew each other. Ammi's babysat for Parker before I even knew who she was, and Becks met Bones when she picked Parker up once. They've gotten along great ever since then."_

" _And she doesn't feel jealous of having to share her son with Dr Brennan?" Cam asked, a little more coldly than she'd meant to._

" _Nah, no way, Camille. Parker loves them both and you want to see them at Parker's tee-ball games. One time, some kid's mother tried to say something bad about him, and before I could say anything, I had to pull two incredibly angry women away from her as they both defended Parker together. It's scary as hell, but I love it at the same time."_

" _Don't call me Camille, Seeley."_

" _Don't call me Seeley."_

They finished their calls at approximately the same time and Booth glanced at both of their shirts, still covered in flour. "We have a case, but I think we should change first."

"I can't go with you, not yet. Contain the scene for now, but I have a dissertation review to get to." She shook her head, silently letting him know that his pleading puppy-dog eyes wouldn't work on her. "Zack needs me there, Booth, and I won't let him down on it."

…

Amethyst waved at Parker as she watched him rush off into school. The five year old was excited every morning, which greatly amused anyone who took him to school. He had an eagerness to learn that Booth had sworn he didn't get from either him or Rebecca, and had insisted that Parker had attained the thirst for knowledge from Amethyst and Brennan, as the five-year-old had spent a lot of time around the two females watching them work and theorise about various things. She waited until he was inside, as she always did, before moving away and climbing into her car. It was understated, but expensive, a testament to how her father was when he could do something that might put her in a favourable mood.

Amethyst grabbed her laptop from the passenger seat and opened it up, opening the files from the ever-present USB. She hadn't found much more of use since the day she'd sat in the diner, but that didn't stop her trying to find the bank robber every chance she got. She wanted the closure, not for herself, but for her mother's sake. She knew that Brennan wouldn't really be free until she'd gotten answers from the man at the very least.

Sighing as her sharp eyes picked up nothing knew, she closed the laptop and set it down before gunning the engine of her car and pulling out of her parking space. She had only one lecture that morning, and Zack and Hodgins had both promised her that they would make time for her in the afternoon to answer a couple of questions she had on some upcoming coursework. Sighing again to herself, she drove off to her college campus, mentally preparing herself for a long and boring day.

…

"Hey Bones, come on, the body was lit up like a Roman candle." Booth announced as he swept into the room. He hated to interrupt the meeting, knowing that Brennan was there really as a reassurance to Zack, but his own bosses were breathing down his neck, particularly due to the nature of the person's death. He'd already been to the scene, but only to make sure that what they'd said was true, before making a U-turn and heading back to the university his partner was sat in. "Hey Zack, how's it going?" He asked as he rounded the desk and placed his hands on the back of Brennan's chair.

"So far they don't like me."

"Shocker." Booth reached down and lifted Brennan gently by the shoulders. "Come on." He ignored the affronted and surprised looks on the faces of the other panel members.

"I'm in the middle of something." Brennan tried to protest, but even she knew that if he'd interrupted her then it must be some kind of important case, more important than they'd been led to believe on the phone.

"Well you know, real life murder versus academic claptrap, there's no contest." He moved the chair out of the way. "No offense."

They made their way out of the room, with a slight pause as Brennan told Zack to simply answer the questions, an understanding between them that he should answer them factually and concisely, without any pointless trivialities. They playfully fought all the way to the SUV, ignoring the stares they could feel in their backs. Brennan kept quiet all the way up until they'd pulled out into traffic.

"Is it more important than we were led to believe, Booth?"

"Trust me Bones, you'll see why I had to come get you as soon as we get there. Everyone else is either there or on their way."

…

"Hey Tempe." Russ knocked on the open door, hating that he was going to have to lie, at least somewhat, to his sister. He was thankful though that his niece didn't appear to be around just yet. The teenager had a spooky sense of when he was lying, even over trivial things.

" _I let you win, Tempe." Russ tried to tell his sister, who was regaling Booth with tales of when she would beat him at various games as a child. That time, she was discussing a basketball game, of all things, but with the analytical way her brain worked, she'd calculated odds and moves before she'd bounced the ball even once. Brennan glanced at him and shrugged, clearly uncaring over whether or not he'd allowed her to win. The grin hadn't left her face once, the one he recalled from when they were kids and she was so proud of having him as her big brother._

" _Liar." A voice whispered by his ear, making him jump. He glanced up to see his niece leant over near him, a smirk covering her features. "You didn't let her win; she beat you fairly."_

" _No."_

" _Yes." Amethyst's smirk widened a little. "I can tell when you're lying, Russ."_

" _Oh, how?"_

" _Why would I tell you that? I think I'd rather let you try to figure that one out on your own."_

Ever since then, no matter what he'd lied about, Amethyst had always sent him a text moments later, or whispered it to him, the tiny word of 'Liar' her way of letting him know that she knew. He'd still not figured out how she knew, and so was just glad that he didn't have to watch out for the girl.

"Russ." She glanced up in surprise from her desk. "What's up?" She asked, automatically making two cups of coffee from a small coffee pot she had in her office, a joint Christmas present from Amethyst and Parker. She led him over to the small table near her desk where they could sit comfortably.

"Dad called me yesterday." He said, deciding that it wasn't technically a lie, not yet.

"What? Dad called you?" Brennan's face remained open, a little curiosity in there as she watched her brother carefully. "You sure it was him?"

Russ took a deep breath, mentally schooling himself. "He said "you and your sister are in danger" and he hung up on me."

"I spend nearly all my time with a sniper-trained FBI agent, Russ. I feel safe."

"Tempe. I know someone's been watching me." Russ tried to make his sister understand.

"What's your evidence?"

"I can feel it on the back of my neck. You spend some time in jail, you pick up a sixth sense about these things." He sighed. "Look, it's not just me I'm worried about. I'm worried about Amy and the kids, and I'm worried about your kids too, Tempe."

"…Maybe you should stay with me for a few days." Brennan said after staring at him for a few long moments.

"Tempe, I have work, and I have Amy and the girls." He ran a hand over his head.

"What about your sixth sense?"

"Hey." He interrupted, though he was smiling. This conversation reminded him of many they'd had as children, and it was hard to be annoyed with her when she looked at him with laughing blue eyes. Eyes that when placed in her daughter's face, he definitely couldn't say no to. It was hard enough saying no to his sister.

"What?"

"You can't not believe in something one second and then use it against me in the next. That's not fair."

"Look, it's a long drive home. Just stay tonight and you can start fresh tomorrow. Oh, and I've got cold beer in the fridge." She held out her keys to him, jingling them a little.

"Don't drink the Moroccan beer; it tastes like ear wax. I've a few bottles in there; drink those instead. Hey, how're you doing, Russ?"

"Okay, Booth. You? Good?" Russ replied awkwardly, hyperaware of the fine line he was walking in everything, particularly in harbouring knowledge of one of the FBI's most wanted.

"Yeah."

"Good." He moved to go, turning to catch the keys Brennan threw to him before leaving as quickly as he could without drawing attention to himself. He stayed silent, not even turning the radio on in his car, as he drove to his sister's apartment. Letting himself in with the keys, he didn't expect to turn around to face an angry teenager with a kitchen knife pointing at his chest.

Seeing that it was only Russ, Amethyst relaxed and dropped the hand holding the knife to her side. "Oh hey Russ, what's up?"

"Dad thinks me and Tempe are in danger."

"Your dad? Did you speak to him, see him, email him?" Amethyst fired off. Russ held up a hand to stop the endless flow of questions.

"Ammi, listen to me." He said seriously. "I don't want to lie to you, and you know when I'm lying anyway, so it wouldn't work. But I'm still your uncle and I'm going to protect you, protect you by not answering your questions."

"I've been looking for him." Amethyst confessed quietly. "I want to find him to get some closure. Closure for mom's sake. I've never met him, or seen a picture outside of his mug shot, so I don't even know what I'm looking for."

"Ammi." He placed his hands on her shoulder and looked her deep in the eye. "You need to stop looking. And if you do figure any more out, don't tell your mom."

"What? Why?"

"Because knowing anything will get you into deep trouble, and I'm here because both me and your mom are supposedly in danger, which means by extension you are too. Don't put yourself in danger for someone who left us with no explanation, Ammi."

Amethyst's eyes narrowed as she watched him carefully. "I'll drop it on one condition."

"What condition?"

"If he shows up, I want you to tell me. It can be a nod of the head or a tap of the foot, I don't care. Just let me know."

Russ racked his brain, trying his best to figure out where it could go wrong, but when he couldn't think of an answer to it, he gave in. "Alright fine. But don't tell Tempe. I don't even know where he is or what he's doing right now anyway."

"I won't, but that doesn't exclude the possibility of her figuring things out on her own." Amethyst smiled. "Anyway, I was just making some lunch before I went to the Jeffersonian for the afternoon. Do you want a ham salad sandwich?"

…

"That's all you dad said, huh? That you're in danger?" Booth questioned as they looked around Garrett Delaney's apartment. He felt something was off about Russ' visit, though he couldn't put his finger on what.

"Yes. And Russ' sixth sense agrees." Brennan replied as she tried to jimmy the door with a credit card, as Booth had shown her one day when they had been bored with nothing better to do.

"That's it? And there was no mention of Gem, or Parks, or anyone else?" Booth probed further, his gut telling him to ask.

"No, why? What're you thinking?" Brennan asked, looking away from the door for a moment.

"I'm not sure yet." He caught sight of her then by the door. "What're you doing?" He asked, his voice tinged with amusement.

"I've been practising some of the black ops things you taught me." She replied.

"Ah, let me show you. There's a knack to these things." He approached her, before giving her a glance of concern. "What's on your mind, Bones?"

"Every FBI agent is looking for my father, so maybe he's trying to scare us off."

"Bones, it's been six months without a break in the case. He ain't gonna be nervous, and he wouldn't send Russ to us if he was scaring us off. Let me show you how to pick the door."

"My dad's a career criminal. Just because he says Russ and I are in danger doesn't mean it's the truth Booth."

Instead of answering, he kicked the door open and flicked the light on, revealing three of the four walls covered in surveillance shots of Russ doing various things, including grocery shopping, meeting with Amy, or even just at work.

"Well, he might've gotten it right this time." Booth commented, moving forward to hold Brennan as her eyes refused to move from the grainy photographs. Her brain just wouldn't process it properly. Someone really was out to get her brother.

...

"I hope to keep working here." Zack commented to Amethyst and Angela as they moved about the room. "What did she mean when she said, "how do you expect anyone to take you seriously?""

Angela and Amethyst shared a look, silently wondering how much to say to him. Angela decided to take the lead in it. "It's a comment, Zack, on your… deportment."

"Dr Brennan doesn't care about deportment." Zack commented as Angela was leaving. She turned back to the conversation she didn't want to be a part of, but Amethyst spoke before she had to.

"That's true, she doesn't. But Zack, if you work here, not just as my mom's grad student, then you're expected to dress the part. You'd be a fully-qualified forensic anthropologist and would have to dress like one to fit in, socially and professionally." Amethyst explained as she looked up from her notebook. "Dr Saroyan would be your boss."

"In your opinions, does deportment matter to Cam?"

Angela and Amethyst shared another look before Amethyst took over, to which the artist took as her cue to leave. "Zack, deportment is big for Dr Saroyan. For her, you have to look as good as you are intellectually, or at least close."

"How do I do that?" Zack asked Amethyst with a genuine confused expression. Amethyst sighed, setting down her notebook.

"Look, a suit wouldn't hurt, or at least a proper shirt and pants. Trimming your hair wouldn't hurt either. Basically, you want to project the kind of person you are inside to the outside."

"Dr Brennan doesn't wear a suit."

"No, but nor does she show up to work in sweats either."

"So, it's not something I have to change all the time?"

"No, you just need to change how you look for work, Zack." Amethyst hopped off the stool she'd been perched on. "Now, you think on that a little more, whilst I have to go find Jack."

…

The following morning, Russ sat in the living room, just watching the bustle as Amethyst got up and rushed out, saying something about picking Parker up and taking him to school for Rebecca, then Booth walking out and making coffee in his shirt and boxers, a sight Russ had no desire to witness, before leaving himself for the office. Finally, Brennan walked out fully dressed, holding a mug of coffee Booth had taken to her earlier when he'd made the pot up, and Russ finally put voice to the thoughts that had kept him up most of the night.

"Tempe, dad had it under control for fifteen years. Everything was fine until…"

"Until what?" Brennan asked, briskly moving around the open plan of her living area.

"Dad left you a message, he said, "stop looking", you didn't."

"Oh, so this is my fault?" Brennan asked incredulously as she placed some folders into her bag.

"Well, consequences aren't the same as fault. My parole officer's very philosophical."

"Well all we have is a voicemail of dad telling us to back off, and a small silver dolphin I found at mom's grave. That's it, that's as far as the investigation has gone."

Russ was silently thankful that his sister didn't know about her daughter's investigation, but he was worried that Amethyst's work into it had been the factor that had caused all the events they'd been experiencing. So instead, he decided to put both of their focuses on another source. "According to Booth."

"What? Booth and I are partners. More than partners. He wouldn't keep something like this from me."

"Tempe, he's FBI, you're not. You're the daughter of two career criminals, and the sister of a loser on parole."

"What? I wouldn't let anyone else call you a loser Russ, what makes you think you're allowed?" She demanded, hotly defending him even as she pulled her coat on to leave for the day. She pinned him with a fierce look that made him smile, however briefly.

"I love you too, sis."

…

Russ followed Max into the Jeffersonian, still trying to tell his dad that his plan wasn't a good one. Max had been insistent on seeing his daughter at least once, despite Russ' repeated proclamations that she wouldn't want to see him, let alone talk to him, even dressed as a priest. He didn't know what Max was thinking, but he was sure he'd spotted Amethyst stood on the platform with his sister and his sister's grad student. All he knew was that it wasn't going to end well for anyone. As Brennan approached them, he caught Amethyst's eye, noting as she glanced at the priest before redirecting her gaze to her uncle and raising her brow in a silent question. Recalling their agreement, he nodded ever so slightly to her, though he was surprised as she looked shocked.

Steeling himself, he swore he would ask his niece about the look afterwards. "Tempe," he addressed his sister, "This is Father Coulter, a friend of dad's. Toby Coulter, train trestle guy."

He caught Amethyst's eye again, trying not to smile as she mouthed "liar" to him from the platform.

"Yeah, I remember that story." Brennan smiled, shaking Max's hand. "When dad and his friend accidentally blew up a train trestle."

Max smiled, relaxing a little, though that was soon scuppered by the sound of footfall behind them. "Come on, how do you accidentally blow up a train trestle?" Max also noted how his daughter's face lit up at the sound of the male voice, though he put that to the back of his mind, closely followed by the thought that Russ hadn't told him that his baby girl had fallen in love. "Well, we'd been hired by the farmer to dynamite ice of a duck pond. Anyway, we get this competition going on who can fly the dynamite farther across the ice before it blows." He related, his quick eyes appraising the man who'd joined them.

"Well you know it's a federal offence to blow up a train trestle, Father." Booth replied with a little hint of a smirk. Brennan pursed her lips, though her eyes had crinkled with amusement. "Even if it is accidental."

"Father Toby Coulter, meet my partner, Seeley Booth." She smiled, and everyone heard the meaning she attributed to the word 'partner'.

Max smiled and held out his hand to shake Booth's, though Russ punctuated the silence with a warning. "Careful, he's FBI." Russ was worried, though not as worried as he would've been if Amethyst or Parker had joined them. He wanted those conversations to be on his sister's terms.

"Oh, well I'm innocent." Max lied, and Russ found his phone vibrate with a text message. Glancing at the message, he stifled a grin.

 _Like Father, like son. He lies too. Ammi x_

"It was Max's toss that brought the trestle down." Max finished, though Booth looked unbelieving.

"Max Keenan's best friend grows up to be a priest."

"Your people have that fact on file somewhere." Max returned evenly.

"Tempe, Father Coulter has-" Russ was cut off by Max, who addressed his daughter with curiosity.

"We have a curious child in our midst." He gestured towards Amethyst, who was watching them closely from the platform, ignoring Zack who was trying to gain her attention. Brennan glanced over and smiled at Amethyst, who relaxed slightly on seeing that her mother wasn't in distress.

"Yes, that is Amethyst." Brennan smiled as she turned back to Max. "She's just worried."

"Anyway, Father Coulter has a message from dad." Russ butted in before anything else could be said. He just wanted his dad in and out before anyone guessed anything. He was harbouring a fugitive quite literally, and he knew his sister wouldn't like it, with or without her other half being an FBI agent. As they all gathered into Brennan's office, Russ breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't wait until all of this was over, and he could go back to Amy and the girls.

…

"I know you."

Amethyst turned from where she'd been unlocking her car to see Max stood a few steps away from her, a curious look on her face. "Really?" She asked, playing dumb as she'd recognised him the moment she'd seen his face in the lab.

"Yes, from the diner. I believe you were having an argument with your father."

"And I believe that you aren't really a priest."

"Who are you?" Max asked curiously.

"Am I required to tell you?"

"Well, no." Max admitted.

"Then I won't." Amethyst opened her passenger door and placed her bag on the seat before closing it and moving around to the other side before re-addressing the man dressed as a priest. "Stop."

"Stop what?" It was Max's turn to play dumb.

"You know what. You'll only hurt her more if you see this through." Amethyst warned.

"I can live with that as long as she's still alive." Max responded quietly. "I already lost my wife; I won't lose my children too."

 **To Be Continued…**


	10. Chapter 10

**(A/N): Hi, long time no update, I know. Honestly, I got stuck, then I had a dissertation to complete and exams, then I got caught up in Harry Potter. But, I just have a waiting game to play with my university now, to see what degree I will get, and so I have decided that whilst I'm only working at my job (and looking for a new job because hey, I need money to live on), I will focus upon my writing for a while. Hence, this chapter for you all. Now then, I love each and every one of you butterflies, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. I really hope that the next chapter I produce will be for Heaven Can Wait, and though I make no promises of that nature, for I may update something else first, I do promise that I will endeavour to get you a new chapter asap. Is that okay? Anyway, enough of my ramblings on, read on and enjoy! I still own nothing.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 10**

"What was that look?"

Amethyst glanced up from her laptop, and the further work she was doing looking into Max Keenan, and his relationship with the real Father Coulter, to find Russ stood over her, curiosity and worry warring for dominance on his features. Silently, Amethyst offered him the seat beside her on her bed, where she'd been working out of the way of her mother and her partner, not wanting them to accidentally discover what she was slowly uncovering. Once her uncle had seated himself beside her, she finally designed to answer him. "What look?"

"You know what look." At Amethyst's genuinely confused expression, Russ revised his thoughts. She really didn't know what he was talking about. "Earlier, when I brought Father in," his eyes twinkled a little at the play on words he used, "you got this shocked look on you face. It was only for a moment, but it was there. So, what was all that about?"

Amethyst sighed, setting her laptop down on her nightstand as she turned to face Russ, granting him her full attention. "I was looking for him; I told you that." He nodded. "I met him one day in a diner, though obviously I didn't know it was him. I was fighting with my dad and he was trying to pull me away. Your dad stepped in, told my dad off and defended me."

"That sounds like dad." Russ agreed, though his face remained serious. "I never really asked this, but Ammi, what's your dad like? Why isn't he with you and Tempe now? I just want to understand, that's all. You know you and your mom have cured me of my idiotic ideas." He smirked at the last comment. Both Brennan and Amethyst had gone to great length to explain to Russ that their dynamic worked for them, and their lives, and that his 'idiotic ideas' about anything to do with them would be unceremoniously quashed in an instant. It had taken a little time, but it had worked, and Russ' relationship with the mother and daughter duo was all the better for it.

"My dad? Well, he and mom love each other, but they'd kill each other if they were still together. I think they function better as friends than they ever did as anything more. I set custody arrangements, and the only time my parents really share me is at Christmas. They live under the same roof for a whole week and a half without resorting to murder, which is great for them." Her smirk faded as she regarded Russ' unamused mien. "Look Russ, once upon a time, they loved each other dearly. Things happened, and they realised they couldn't live with one another anymore. As time has gone on, they've gotten friendlier again, to a point where one could almost, almost call them friends, albeit tentatively. I think Booth is much better for my mom than my dad ever would be. I'm not one of those children that can't see that their parents are incompatible for one another. I love them both but I'm not blind to their faults. Just as I'd hope that they're not blind to mine or each other's."

"Thanks for explaining it to me." Russ made to get up before turning back to the teenager, a frown settling over his brow. "Ammi, did dad follow you out of the lab?"

"Yeah, wanted to know who I was."

"Did you tell him?"

"No. I figured it was up to mom if she ever wanted to tell him."

"Do _you_ want him to know?"

"I… I don't know. I'm focused more on mom and Booth at the moment. Will you tell him?"

"…No. Tempe doesn't know it's him yet, and I'd rather it be her choice of whether or not he finds out. That's not to say he won't find out anyway, but…"

"…He won't find out from you. Thanks, Uncle Russ."

Russ smiled at the rare title Amethyst addressed him with. She didn't really call him uncle, and it was something he wanted to hear her say again. It gave him the sense of family he didn't know he'd craved from his own side of his relations, even though he had Amy and the girls. He wouldn't be telling his dad anything, no matter how much he pushed for it. He'd protect his niece and his sister. It was what a big brother and an uncle should do.

…

"Delaney's murder, the threats on Russ' life, this is all happening now because of a little metal dolphin we found on your mother's grave. FBI field office in Denver traced it to a local artist in Colorado." Booth handed the small dolphin in an evidence bag to Brennan.

They'd been working from Brennan's apartment, but when Booth had gotten a call about a potential breakthrough, from someone he trusted, they'd moved back to the FBI building. They'd left Amethyst with Russ, neither of whom had seemed either pleased or displeased with the idea. Both Brennan and Booth thought that they would just do their best to ignore the other within the cramped space of Brennan's apartment. Booth had warned them not to go anywhere alone.

Brennan held the bag in her slender fingers as she picked up the narrative. "Who identified dad as the buyer. But Delaney left the FBI fifteen years ago," she pointed out, setting the dolphin figure down on top of the paperwork.

"Somebody told him about your dad." Booth replied.

"And didn't tell you?"

"They're part of the conspiracy."

"You must be annoyed." Brennan placed a hand on his arm sympathetically. She knew how much he hated when those kinds of things happened.

"Yeah, you know what? I am." Booth practically growled, though he covered her hand with his own to squeeze it with gratitude before dropping it to walk towards the door of his office. "And I don't like finding out there's a dirty FBI agent in this building." He closed the door, careful eyes watching to see if it had caught anyone's attention. Satisfied, he made his way back over to his partner, who looked more concerned for him than anything else in that moment. "Alright, here's what I think happened. Delaney goes to your father, asks him to hand over the evidence. He doesn't do it? He kills you or Russ." Booth's jaw clenched at the idea that anyone could hurt his Bones. It hadn't been that long since she had been buried underground, after all. He still got a little nervous when she wasn't with him, and he knew Amethyst was the same. Brennan managed to send him a slight smile of reassurance.

"I'm alright, Booth. Anyway, dad calls Russ to warn him, and then kills Delaney." She ended with a slight sob, not knowing how anyone could kill in cold blood so much. She knew she'd have the capability to do so, should anyone harm Amethyst or Parker, mainly Amethyst, but there would be no way she could take such a decision lightly, despite the capability.

"Guts him and burns him, leaving a calling card behind. 'Don't mess with Max Keenan's kids'." Booth finished for her, gathering her up into a light embrace, both comforting and protecting her.

"Am I supposed to _like_ that?" Brennan asked, mainly rhetorically, resting her forehead on his shoulder.

"You know, Bones, I'd take a stand-up crook over a crooked cop any day of the week. In a messed up way, he's being honourable." Their conversation was interrupted by Caroline storming into the office, though she paused in the doorway.

"Booth." Both glanced over to her, though neither made the attempt to move from the other's light hold. "I got us a meet with the judge, let's go. And you," she pointed at Brennan, 'better get back to your lab in case we're successful." She left the office as abruptly as she'd arrived. Brennan stared at Booth, a question burning in her icy blue eyes.

"I find it best to just do what she says." Booth answered her unspoken question swiftly, offering her a lopsided grin that made her want to kiss him.

"Okay." She stated, though it came out as more of a question. As Booth made to let go of her, she asked the one question that had been eating at her the whole case. "Booth, why just me and Russ? Why not my daughter as well? It seems logical that a person's children and grandchildren can be used against them, rather than just the children."

Booth shrugged. "I don't know, Bones. The only people who can answer that are dead or wanted for bank robbery right now. I really don't know."

"Then we need to get this case closed, to find out just how much danger my daughter is in as well as my brother and I."

"We'll figure it out. We always do."

…

After Russ' shooting, Beckett's release and Booth's subsequent suspension, the team continued to work doggedly on the case, including another visit to 'Father Coulter', in which Max thoroughly dismissed any further progress on the case by stating that 'Max' wouldn't contact him again, and another conversation between Brennan and Booth about whether or not Max should be arrested and who should be the one to perform that task. When they caught the name on the list that Caroline gave to them, Brennan tried to call her brother, to no avail. Frantically, Booth drove Brennan to her apartment as she tried to call her home line, Russ' cell and Amethyst's cell, the latter of whom was supposed to be sticking to Russ like glue. None of the lines picked up, further fuelling the panic of the partners as they pulled up outside Brennan's building and pounded up the stairs, foregoing the elevator as being too slow.

Reaching Brennan's door, Booth drew his gun before kicking the piece of wood open, calling out for Russ as Brennan called out for Amethyst. Finding neither, Booth moved to check the back rooms as Brennan noticed the large pool of blood on the floor of her living room, too large for anyone to have survived losing it. No, she tried to think, even as she cried out, "Oh my god." She felt her brain shut down in fear and panic as she called for her partner, who came running at her shout. "Russ. _Ammi_."

"Alright, take it easy. We don't know that for certain."

"It's too much blood." She told him breathlessly, her mind stuck on a constant loop of negatives. "Nobody could survive that amount of blood loss." She then collapsed into Booth, sobs racking her frame as she cried into his shoulder. Booth's arms circled her torso, holding her upright as he prayed to every deity he could think of that the girl he thought of as a daughter, and the girl's uncle, were safe and well. He didn't think he could bear it otherwise. And he knew it would break his girlfriend if her little girl was harmed, or worse.

…

Amethyst shot a glare at Max as he parked up at the back of the place he was staying. She was sat in the back of the Jeep-like vehicle, Russ in the passenger seat. She had a bruise on her left cheekbone, but other than that she was unharmed. Russ was completely unharmed. She scowled harder at Max, trying to ignore everything that had already gone on.

 _A knock on the door made Amethyst jump from her position on the couch, book in hand as she'd curled up in the corner of the comfortable piece of furniture some time earlier. Russ had spotted her and smiled, telling her of times when her mother had done much the same as a child. The knock sounded again, but before she could get up, Russ had beaten her to it. One look through the peephole had Russ whispering "dad", gesturing for Amethyst to move out of the way._

 _Taking the hint, Amethyst stood with her book and silently moved to her room, settling on her bed to continue reading her book. She heard Russ open the door followed by a hushed conversation that she only heard snippets of. From what she had heard, she could tell that Max wanted Russ to get out, that whatever threat was out there was going after Russ still, and he needed to be safe. Russ was fighting it, and eventually, she heard him tell Max that he was going to the restroom. Instead of doing that however, he slipped into Amethyst's room, causing her to look up and discard the book she was reading._

" _Russ?" She whispered almost silently, her head cocked in question._

 _Russ sat beside her. "We need to get out of here, Ammi. Dad's here, so I'll go with him, and as soon as I'm gone, I need you to get somewhere safe, alright? Is there anywhere you can get to quickly?"_

" _I'll go to my dad's offices. It's a ten minute drive from here." Amethyst assured him, sliding off the bed to grab a pair of combat boots and a hooded sweatshirt, so she could leave instantly after Russ and Max._

" _Son, what's taking so long?" Both Russ and Amethyst froze at the other voice, not having time to move as Max appeared in the doorway. He blinked in shock at the sight of the familiar teenaged girl stood in the middle of a bedroom, one boot on and holding the other one, hooded sweatshirt over her head but not over her arms, with his son sat on the bed, looking like a deer caught in the headlights. "What is going on here?"_

 _The sound of smashing glass made them all jump and run towards the sound, Russ helping Amethyst put her second boot on whilst in motion. The whizzing sound of a bullet made them all drop to the floor, Russ' weight covering Amethyst and causing her face to smack the floor a little too hard. Amethyst nearly groaned, knowing that the tenderness she could already feel meant that there would be an almighty bruise forming there almost instantly._

" _Stay down," Max commanded, "and get back in the room until I say otherwise." Amethyst just caught sight of a man she recognised from the FBI office, though she didn't know exactly who he was, before Russ was pulling her up and getting her back into her room, shutting the door behind them._

" _Have you got any kind of weapon in here?" Russ whispered frantically. Amethyst took the pen pot off her desk and shook the contents out on her bed, handing Russ a knife she had hidden in there, before reaching for her closet and producing a metal baseball bat._

" _This is all I have here." She returned, wielding the bat as Russ held the knife comfortably in his hand, both ready and aimed at the doorway. They waited silently as they heard sounds of a scuffle followed by two gun shots, another scuffle followed by a third shot. Then, silence._

 _They exchanged glances but didn't move from their defensive positions as they heard footsteps heading towards the door, followed by the turning of the doorknob. They readjusted their hold on their respective weapons as the door opened._

" _It's me," Max called out just as Russ stepped forwards, brandishing the knife, and Amethyst made to swing the bat at the abdomen of whomever entered. Both managed to curtail their activities at the last second, though Max looked pleased that they had some method of defending themselves ready. "Come on, we need to go. Now."_

 _He shepherded the pair into the living room, where Amethyst saw the FBI man covered in blood, her mother's new shower curtain waiting to wrap the body up. She felt sick at the sight of the lifeless man, and turned to the other two to say so. "What did you do?" She demanded of Max, her voice low and controlled. Dangerous. Russ flinched slightly, but Max barely even seemed to notice that she'd spoken._

" _Russ, get the girl in the car. Third one down. I'll bring that." He gestured towards the body._

" _I'm not going anywhere with you." Amethyst countered._

" _Don't argue with me." Max told her, his temper short after the fight he'd just been in to save his son._

" _I'm not arguing; I'm making a statement. I'm not going anywhere with you." She turned to Russ. "I'll leave with you, but I'm going to dad's office like we discussed."_

 _Russ opened his mouth to agree, but Max replied before he had the chance. "No. Nowhere is safe right now. Leave your phones on the side, they can be traced. I'm taking you both with me."_

" _That's kidnapping." Russ and Amethyst stated together, eyeing Max with similar expressions of wonder for his sanity._

" _If that's what it takes then so be it."_

" _I'm not kidnapping her, dad." Russ shook his head. "Tempe would kill me, bring me back to life and kill me again. Just let her go to her dad's place. I'll come with you."_

" _No, too risky. You," he pointed to Russ, "bring the shower curtain down with him in it in exactly two minutes time. You," he pointed to Amethyst, "you're coming with me."_

 _Amethyst was going to fight him until she spotted Russ giving her a slight shake of the head, telling her not to fight him on it. She didn't know why, but she trusted that Russ wouldn't let any harm come to her, so she only gave a token struggle as Max grabbed her by the arm and pulled her along to a waiting car, piling her into the backseat and locking her in the vehicle. Hunkering down, she began fiddling, trying to find a way of circumventing the locking mechanism, but before she was able to finish her task, Russ had arrived, and the father and son had climbed into the car._

Amethyst continued to glare daggers at Max, even as he climbed out of the car. Russ turned to her with a soft smile of apology. "I'm sorry, Ammi, but he would have took you either way, and I didn't want you to get hurt. I'll make him leave you here before he takes me elsewhere. Can you tell Tempe something for me?"

Amethyst nodded. She didn't like it, but at least she knew the reasons behind Russ' actions, or lack thereof. "Sure, Russ."

"Tell her that I'm sorry, and that I'll always be her big brother, no matter where I am." Russ glanced out of the windshield as Max appeared to have finished his quick scout of their surroundings. "And dad isn't usually like this. It's his worry for Tempe and me that have made him like this."

"What, a murderer?" She asked sardonically. Russ shook his head.

"No, and I don't like it either. I meant this paranoid, worried, the kind of person that would kidnap a teenager out of a misguided need to protect her." Russ replied pointedly. Amethyst rolled her eyes.

"Fine, I won't hurt him too much, but there is no way I'm going any further with you two. I'd rather walk home from here. Mom's probably already freaking out." Amethyst sighed, but climbed out of the car, Russ on her heels as Max finally returned to them.

"Alright, now we're out of immediate danger, let's get back to our conversation." Max told them almost cheerfully. "Who are you? Why were you in my daughter's apartment with my son?" He asked Amethyst, before turning his questions to Russ. "Why would Tempe kill you for taking her? Why was she there, not even fully dressed, in the first place?" His connotations were clear, making uncle and niece both cringe at the implications.

"Dad, no." Russ was the first to reply, his nose scrunching up in disgust. Amethyst shook her head.

"I only didn't have shoes on. That's hardly 'not dressed'." She told him, not even bothering to hide her dislike for him. "And I resent your implications."

"Well, what was going on then?" Max pressed, watching with curiosity as his son and the teenager exchanged glances, clearly deciding on what to tell him. He didn't get as far as he did without the ability to read people. Finally, Amethyst nodded in resignation, sighing as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I was there because I live there." Amethyst told Max bluntly. "I'm his niece." She gestured to Russ.

Russ nodded his agreement. "Yeah, I'm her uncle."

Max felt his mouth moving, though no words were coming out. He had no way of coping with the information they'd just handed him, and there was no way on earth that he would have ever guessed. "You're… you're Tempe's daughter?" He finally managed to choke out. Amethyst nodded mutely.

"But, you're like thirteen."

"Fourteen, actually. I'm fifteen next week." Amethyst replied defensively. Russ placed his hand on her shoulder, a mixture of comfort and warning for her not to lose her temper too soon.

"But… that would've made Tempe…"

"Fifteen." Russ answered for him quietly.

"No. Not my baby." Max shook his head in denial.

Amethyst rolled her eyes again. It was going to be a long day.

…

"Mom!"

Brennan braced herself for the impact, even as her brain wondered at the fact her baby girl was there, with her, even though she'd spent most of the night looking for her, on and off with Booth. Eventually, she'd decided to see the priest, to see if he could help her at all. She hadn't expected her daughter to be there, looking relieved that Brennan had appeared.

Brennan hugged her daughter tightly, tears seeping down her face as she felt similar ones from her daughter wet her shirt. She could be angry with her later, but for now, the terrified mother was simply relieved that her daughter was safe and sound in her arms. "Ammi. I'm so glad you're alright."

"I'm fine, mom." Amethyst pulled back a bit. "I love you."

"I love you too." Brennan's eyes fell to her cheek, to the bruise there. "What happened?"

"Russ fell on me." Amethyst tried to shrug it off as Max appeared, once more dressed as a priest.

"Temperance."

Max secretly wondered how he'd not noticed earlier, as side by side, the relationship between the two females was blindingly obvious. However, he had a job to do, and he gestured for his daughter to walk with him, telling her tales of her youth and agreeing to do things her way for a change. However, he slipped slightly, and, the smart woman his daughter was, she caught it.

"You've had work done, but I cannot believe I didn't see it earlier. Dad?"

"Tempe." Max's smile fell as Brennan looked crushed at the revelation.

"You... did you kill Delaney? Did you take my daughter? Where's Russ? You said he was safe with you, but you're here, so where is he? Why should I even believe you?" The questions came bursting out with such rapidity that she didn't even notice she'd slipped in regards to Amethyst.

"Russ refused to take her, so I did. I didn't know you had a child, Tempe. You were only a child yourself. That's not the way to bring another child into this world."

Brennan felt herself bristle at the words. "That was my decision and I stick by it. Amethyst is my daughter, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Have you even tried to know her?"

"She avoided me ever since I took her from your apartment." Max admitted.

"There you go then." Brennan spat out. "I'm going to have to arrest you."

"Why?"

"You broke the law!"

"I'm not going to jail honey."

…

"He loves you, you know."

Brennan glanced over to her daughter. They were alone for once. Booth was round at Rebecca's to see Parker and to give him a gift he'd promised the five year old. Brennan had been lost in her thoughts for a long time, though she made sure her eyes never left her daughter for more than three seconds at a time. "Who?"

"Russ. He said to tell you that he loves you and that he'll always be your big brother, no matter where he is."

"He left me. Again." Brennan sighed, pulling her daughter into her arms. "I gave him a second chance and he left, again."

"Mom."

"No, sweetheart. You, Booth and Parker are all the family I need."

 **To Be Continued…**


	11. Chapter 11

**(A/N): Okay, wow, I somehow got inspiration for this, and I'm not entirely sure where from, but this has no episode in it, and is something I felt needed to happen at some point, particularly as I've gotten over a fic without Ammi being a typical teenager at any point. I think Brennan might be a little OOC, particularly with where in the series this is based, but I feel like it may hold some sort of truth to it with how we see Brennan as a mother in the later seasons, but particularly the last few. Still, as always I love your reviews and feedback, and I will endeavour to get Heaven Can Wait updated soon. Oh, and I reused a bit I wrote in Heaven Can Wait about Brennan not having a curfew at home. Anyway, read on, I hope you enjoy, and I'll see you on the next chapter.**

 **Take Two**

 **Chapter 11**

"Can I-?"

"No."

"But-"

"No."

"That's not-"

"Still no."

Amethyst scowled as she crossed her arms over her chest. It had been nearly three weeks since the events surrounding Kirby and Max, and although the bruise on her face had faded to almost nothing, her mother had decided that Amethyst was given far too much leeway and, scared for her daughter's safety, Brennan had decided to not let the teenager out of her sight. However, that didn't sit well with the largely independent teenager, whose fifteenth birthday had been spent at home, despite her already having plans to go out for the day with Daisy and a couple of other girls from college. She hadn't even been back to college since the incident, no matter how much she'd tried. Her mother wouldn't budge on the matter. Even Booth, who Amethyst knew was wildly overprotective of her, had taken her side on the issue, trying his best to point out to his partner that she was a teenager, and couldn't really be treated the same as Parker, who wasn't allowed out of his father's apartment or his mother's home without supervision. Brennan had simply ignored him.

Booth offered Amethyst a sympathetic smile, not sure what more he could do for someone that, despite familial feelings on both sides, was not actually his child by blood. Amethyst rolled her eyes in return, clearly stating her feelings on the matter as she got up from the couch and stalked off in the direction of her bedroom without even a glance at her mother.

Booth sat forward as soon as Amethyst had slammed her door shut. "Bones, don't you think you're maybe being a little… unreasonable?"

"With what?" Brennan asked, looking up, having gone back to reading an anthropological journal as soon as Amethyst had given up arguing with her.

"Gem." Booth gestured towards Amethyst's closed door. "She's not a child, Bones, and you're treating her like she's younger than Parker. I bet you've never been this way with her before."

"Well, no, I haven't, but that was before she nearly died thanks to my father," Brennan replied, half her attention still on the journal article she was reading. "She'll have to adjust to the new parameters I've set."

"Bones…" Booth sighed. "Kids, especially teenagers, don't work like that. Ammi thinks you're being unreasonable, all of it coming from something that wasn't her fault. She didn't want to go, and Max was going to take her along with Russ for the long haul. That she protested so much means she wants to be here, with you. But you're starting to stifle her a bit."

Brennan set her journal down, her jaw set mulishly. Booth recognised her expression as similar to when she didn't get her own way at work when arguing with Cam, who'd calmed down a little since the escapades of three weeks earlier in regard to Booth and Brennan and their personal relationship. "No Booth, I know my own daughter and Ammi will be fine with it. I need to keep her safe."

"Fine." Booth held his hands up in surrender. "Just don't say I didn't try to tell you." He glanced over only to find that his girlfriend was back reading her journal and blatantly ignoring the loud music emanating from the teenager's bedroom. Though Amethyst acted older in many ways, she was still only fifteen, a fact which most people tended to ignore or forget.

…

Amethyst paced her bedroom, the music masking any outside noise. She'd heard Booth trying to defend her, help her, and her mother's rebuttal. She'd turned the music on to drown out anything else they may say that would only serve to anger her further. She knew Booth was on her side and she didn't understand why she was being essentially punished for something that wasn't even her fault.

Something popped into her head and she stopped pacing, an idea forming as she practically ran to her closet, dragging out a large black duffel bag and laying it on her hastily made bed. She'd had enough, the three weeks of being confined to the apartment enough to make her develop cabin fever. It wasn't that she hated the apartment, but anyone could grow to resent somewhere if they were stuck there long enough. She didn't want to, but she was going to have to get out of there, if only for her own sake.

Grabbing some jeans, underwear, a change of shoes, several t-shirts and a couple of sweatshirts, she piled them all into the bag and zipped it closed before grabbing her college backpack and setting that on top of the duffel bag. She quickly placed her laptop inside along with her relevant notes and a few notebooks and pens, zipping that up too. Sliding a pair of sneakers on and dragging out a lightweight jacket to put on, she opened the door to the hallway quietly. Her mother and Booth were still in the living area, between herself and the door. So, keeping her idea firmly in her mind, she walked to her desk and took a scrap piece of paper and a pencil, penning a short note for them to read later. Preferably, long after she'd gone. She knew it was cruel, disappearing on them so soon after the last time, but she wasn't cut out to be confined for no good reason indefinitely.

 _Mom (and Booth),_

 _I'm sick of being punished for something that wasn't even my fault. I told dad he couldn't tell me what to do like that, and you're getting even worse than he is. I'll be back whenever, but I'm staying at dad's for a while. At least I know I'll get to go to school while I'm with him. You need to come to terms with what happened, without foisting those fears onto me and controlling me. And Booth, thanks for trying._

 _Ammi x_

Finishing the note and grabbing a key from her desk that she slipped into her jeans pocket, she left the letter on her pillow in plain view before hoisting open her window, rather glad that they were only a couple of floors up as she grabbed a rope from the bottom of her closet (she'd taken some of Brennan's expedition gear when she was younger) and tied it round her duffel bag, lowering it out of the window before tying the rope to the base of her bed and following her bag out of said window, backpack resting firmly between her shoulders.

As she reached the ground, she untied the duffel bag and slipped to the underground parking lot, unlocking her car with the spare key her dad had told her to keep in her room as a just in case scenario and hoisting her things into the backseat before driving out of the apartment building and down some backstreets that she knew would be quicker until she reached her dad's office building, which was, as she'd told Russ, a mere ten minute drive from Brennan's apartment.

She knew that her act could be seen as childish, a childish act of rebellion against actions of a person in a position of authority, but for her it was that she'd never had that kind of relationship with her mother before, and so she didn't know how to be that kind of meek, obedient child when people were being unreasonable (at least in her opinion).

Reaching her father's office building, she pulled into the underground parking lot there. Whilst she didn't much like living with him, it was better than the alternative at that moment. She just needed time and space and hoped that that was what Brennan needed too.

…

James smiled at his daughter as he glanced at his call screen, noting that it had taken barely an hour for his ex-fiancée to notice that their daughter was gone. Amethyst had explained everything to him, which had explained some things, such as why she'd not shown up to a meal he'd planned two weeks earlier, to introduce his girlfriend to his daughter and vice versa. He'd told Katie about Amethyst anyway, and she'd been fine with it, in fact seeming more relaxed after finding out than she had before, later telling him it made her feel more secure in that he was opening up to her somewhat.

Answering his phone, he offered his daughter another reassuring glance. "Dante."

" _James, Ammi is gone."_

"I know," James replied calmly, twiddling a pen in his free hand. Amethyst didn't even look up from her laptop.

" _Are you going to help me search for her?"_

"Why? I can see her. She's with me."

" _What? Put her on. I need to talk to her."_

"Am, your mom wants to speak to you." James didn't bother covering the mouthpiece of the phone to address the teenager. Amethyst looked up, her eyes weary.

"Fine but put it on speaker for me please. I'd rather it not be quite private right now."

"Sure honey." James placed the phone down and hit the speaker button. "I've put you on speaker Tempe."

" _Amethyst, how could you run away like that, again?"_

Amethyst could hear Booth's muffled voice in the background, that sounded suspiciously like he was backing her up rather than her mother. "I didn't 'run away' last time. I'll be home at some point next week."

" _No, you need to be home right now. I don't know how you even got to your dad's in the first place."_

"I told you where I was going, and I won't be home tonight. I can't live in the bubble you've created for me mom. You need to deal with what happened, without foisting it off onto me, or anyone else. I still set custody arrangements, and I want to stay with dad right now. I'll call you over the weekend." Amethyst made a cutting motion with her hand, and James cut the speaker button, placing the phone back up to his ear.

"Tempe, listen. I'll take good care of her, make sure she goes to classes and things, three meals a day and everything. She'll be fine."

" _James…"_ He heard her sigh, a sound which sounded rather close to a sob. _"…I can't lose her."_

James glanced up, motioning Amethyst out of earshot before replying. "Tempe, there's more than one way to lose someone. You're driving her away through your misguided attempt to protect her, which has actually succeeded in smothering her instead. Trust me, I've done it enough times to know it never works. She's just as stubborn as her mom in that way. Just, think about this; would you like to be treated the way you've treated Am over the last three weeks?"

" _Take care of her, James."_

"Always, Tempe." Hanging up, James stood and made his way over to his daughter. "Alright then, shall we go grab something horribly greasy and satisfying for lunch?"

…

Brennan wiped the tears from her eyes, refusing stubbornly to let them fall. Booth had been supportive, but he'd also made his opinion clear well before her daughter disappeared on her for the second time in three weeks. He'd had a meeting at work he couldn't miss, and she'd sent him in, telling him she'd be fine alone for a while. Glancing round the apartment, she couldn't help but feel it was incredibly empty without her daughter there too, almost as though she lived on her own. It wasn't a pleasant feeling at all. She wanted her daughter back, but James' question had made her think deeply. She had imposed all the new rules and conditions on Amethyst to appease her own state of mind, not registering that her daughter may have opposing feelings on the matter. It was all for her, not Amethyst's safety as she'd been telling herself.

She honestly would hate to be treated the way Amethyst had been the last three weeks, and could vividly recall a time in the foster system where she had been treated like that, shortly before she'd found out she was pregnant with her daughter, and she'd hated every second of it, rebelling as much as possible at the foreign way she was being raised. Her real parents had never treated her that way and with them she hadn't even had a curfew, unlike her brother, having successfully argued her way around the need for a curfew against her dad. So the system had been a massive shock for her, and was now for Amethyst, she realised with guilt.

Unfortunately though, she had no idea how to make it up to her. That was something she needed to work on, and she could do it before the weekend, when her daughter had promised to call. Until then, she knew she needed to process what had happened those three weeks earlier, lest she decide to fall back into coddling her daughter far too much again.

…

Max sat opposite Russ in a dingy diner, identical mugs of coffee between them. Russ had been stubbornly silent the entire time he'd been with Max, refusing to talk to the man that had ruined his second chance with his sister, a chance he knew he'd gotten partly through her boyfriend and her daughter. He wished he hadn't gone with Max, but he also knew that there was no way Max would have simply let him walk away like Amethyst. It had taken all of her protests and Russ' staunch support to allow Max to leave her with her mother and not be dragged with the two men on the seemingly endless road trip.

"So, how long you going to stay mad at me for?" Max asked conversationally. No answer. "Well, I never knew I was a grandfather. She's, uh, opinionated."

Russ glared at him. "She's awesome. Leave her alone. And you're not her grandfather, not to her."

"Who do I have to kill for defiling my baby girl?" Max cut straight to the point after getting his son riled up enough to talk to him. He hadn't known about his granddaughter and presumed much the same as Russ had about her conception.

Russ visibly flinched at the veiled reminder of what he'd thrown at his sister on more than one occasion about her baby girl. "No one. It was Tempe's choice and she made it."

"But she was only fifteen."

"She thought it might bring you back. You and mom. It didn't but she fell in love with that little baby girl."

"Surely you tried to talk her out of it."

"I did, and it got me kicked out of her life completely. It was thanks to Ammi and Booth that I got a second chance with my sister, a chance that you ruined by the way."

"Tempe will forgive you Russ. She'll forgive us both."

"No dad, she won't. And I, for one, don't blame her in the slightest."

 **To Be Continued…**


End file.
